We're All Mad Here
by Ava Miranda Dakedavra
Summary: Hermione had fixed Hogwarts, found her parents and given them their memories back, and then been offered a teaching position by McGonagall, where she readily accepted it and began to work out lesson plans. But what she and everybody else hadn't expected were a few visitors.
1. Down the Rabbit Hole

**I'm still thinking on other pairings, but I know for a fact that I want Hermoony. The debate is between Sirius and Ginny or Luna. Meh. I'll leave that up to you guys.**

* * *

It was just after the War. Nearly a month afterwards, if you wanted to be precise. Hogwarts had been fixed up and polished and the students were quickly sent back home as everyone tried to breathe and clear their heads to figure out a future for themselves. Hermione had fixed Hogwarts, found her parents and given them their memories back, and then been offered a teaching position by McGonagall, where she readily accepted it and began to work out lesson plans.

But what she and everybody else hadn't expected were a few visitors.

Filch hadn't known what it was. Hadn't known that Harry still treasured it, even though he'd leant it to Neville before he left. Hadn't known what the repercussions were of throwing the seemingly useless piece of blank parchment into the fire. Hadn't known that it would soon drive Hermione Granger mad.

She'd been walking through the hallways one night to clear her head, with the intent of going down the grounds to enjoy the summer night. She'd heard voices, voices that didn't sound at all familiar, and quickly got out her wand to investigate. She knew that if these people didn't know who she was, she wouldn't intimidate very well. She was rather on the short side, and rather petite from the months in the woods, and it wasn't as if she were dressed – or even built – like Lara Croft. Jeans and a baggy borrowed Quidditch jersey did not strike fear into the heart of anyone. But the person who wore them could.

She'd stepped out into the empty hallway and blinked, scratching her head before shrugging it off as her imagination. She turned back around and started walking down her original path, humming to herself now. She slowly walked down the steps and turned a corner to head outside when she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She turned around and aimed her wand, eyes darting around for anything. When nothing happened, she lowered it and looked around curiously before sighing and saying to herself, "I must be going mad."

"Apparently!" a jovial voice said, making her whirl around with a scream and hex whoever the owner was. She blinked when they only stared right back at her, although she blinked even more when she could see right through him. He snorted and put his hands on his hips, the ghostly form wearing a pair of Muggle jeans and a blurred Muggle band t-shirt, long hair hanging around his face, "Rude you are! You don't just go and hex new friends!"

"Who said you were a friend?" she asked, hands on her own hips as she frowned at the ghost.

"Well, let's fix that," he said before smiling charmingly and tipping an imaginary hat as he gave a bow, "Sirius Black, at your service." She gasped and he looked up as she went rather pale and gaped a little at him. "Err – problem?"

"You're supposed to be dead!" she said before catching herself as he smirked and arched an eyebrow at her, "Well, I mean forty-years-old and dead. Not – how old are you here, sixteen, seventeen?"

"Bingo!" he said, grinning as he tapped his nose, "Seventeen, right on the dot!"

"Why are you here?" she asked, mostly to herself.

"We got bored," somebody said behind her, making her whirl around and gape as her heart momentarily stopped. He looked like Harry, same jaw line and messy hair and an easy-going grin, although his glasses were rectangular and he was wearing a button-up shirt and jeans, hands shoved down in the pockets.

"Oh no, tell me it stops here," she groaned, throwing a hand over her eyes.

"Sorry," a small voice said, making her look up at the stair railing to see that a rather chubby boy was peeking over at her, short light hair the only thing she could see beside his face.

"Shit," she cursed, running a hand through her hair, "Shit, shit."

"Ooh, such language," James grinned brightly at her, "What's your name, pet?" He picked his feet up and floated there, crossing his legs and resting his chin on a fist.

"Hermione," she said shakily before releasing a breath, marching up the stairs and going past Peter, the other two following her quickly enough as she began to jog down the hallways, creeping along.

"Now, Hermione, where are you going?" Sirius asked curiously.

She bit her lip and said nothing, putting a finger to her lips as she got out her wand and knelt to a door, "Alohamora." She pushed the door open slowly, creeping in to Filch's office and looking around worriedly. "Accio Marauder's Map." She covered her mouth with her free hand as flecks of ashes flew into her open palm. "Oh no, oh no, oh – "

"So you've heard of us?" James questioned lightly before wincing a little, "D'you think you could help us? Last thing I remember is making the map with them, and then apparently we've up and died."

"No, no, just – oh, I need to get out of here before he catches me," she said, moving out of the room and locking it again, muttering to herself, "I may be a professor now, but it is never good to get on Filch's bad side."

"You're a professor?" Sirius asked before wrinkling his nose, "And here I thought you'd be _good_ company."

"Sirius, hush," James chided as Peter floated up next to them.

"Well, alright, in the map, you'd apparently made a copy of your spirits from your birth to the point where you put the copies into the map. And whenever Filch burned the paper, he let your spirits out. Jesus, I'm sorry."

James nodded slowly before grinning easily, "Heh, at least we're somewhere fun."

"Pranking for all eternity sounds alright," Sirius smiled as well.

"I leave you lot for five minutes and you've gone and ruined somebody's night!" a new voice announced, making them turn and look at the new figure. He had a frown and his arms were crossed, wearing a button up shirt like James, although the sleeves were rolled up and he had on a t-shirt underneath. His hair kept getting in his eyes, and he had scars on his face, one even cutting through his right eyebrow and another nearly to the corner of his upper lip. He looked over Hermione curiously as she did the same to him.

"Moony, this is Hermione – Hermione, this is our friend, Remus," Sirius introduced.

"Nice to meet you," she nodded before sighing and walking away, looking down at the ashes in her hand. "How am I going to tell Harry? Oh, I shouldn't – he'd get terribly upset. Best just to tell him it's lost, that should work."

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked her, popping into her line of sight by hanging upside down in front of her, making her blink at him.

"Back to bed," she answered, swiping her hands free of the ashes and the dirt that came with it.

"Want some company?" he asked, giving a grin.

She frowned dully at him and walked through his head, making him hiss and her resist the urge to shiver at the cold, "No, I do not."

And thus began the madness.


	2. Curiouser and Curiouser

Three weeks. Three weeks with the madness. Three horrible, painful, distracting weeks.

No work. No work was done anywhere in her office or in her quarters. None of it. It was piling up, she was sure, just like the stress was piling up on her. That's why she did it, you see, she didn't do it to be cruel, she just couldn't _take it_ anymore.

James and Sirius had a funny way of showing that they considered her a friend, following her and constantly bugging her. Peter followed them along and even joined in once or twice. The only one that left her alone was Remus, and during that time period she was glad, although in hindsight she was curious as to why he was avoiding her.

Ginny and Luna had stopped by to say hi and to congratulate her on landing the job whenever they'd noticed the two hard at work at annoying her, floating around her head as she thumped it into her desk.

"Err…Hermione?" Ginny had asked, making all three stop and have Hermione pick her head up to wince.

"Don't make me explain," she pouted, setting her chin on the desk as James and Sirius looked at the two girls curiously, the two looking back at them in the same manner.

Ginny pursed her lips and shared a glance with the blonde before nodding, "Fine. So, uhh…." Ginny seemed at a loss for what to say, but Luna perked right up.

"I've always been curious about spirits," Luna stated before hopping onto the corner of Hermione's desk, distracting James and Sirius long enough for Ginny to slip over to Hermione for her to whine quietly into her friend's shoulder. Ginny had patted her back and in the end wished her luck before dragging Luna out by the arm as she happily waved to James and Sirius.

"Well, she was nice enough," Sirius stated.

"A little weird though," James noted before receiving a very harsh glare from Hermione.

"Leave her alone," she huffed before going back to her paperwork, "Better yet, leave _me_ alone."

"Nope!" they chorused happily, making her groan and slump a little in her chair.

The only peace she got seemed to be when she was in the bathroom, brushing her teeth or hair or something. She'd found that ghosts couldn't go into the bathroom, unless they had a special link to it like Myrtle did – who, by the way, was thrilled at the newest spiritual additions to Hogwarts, made evident by the boys' constant staying in her office to get rid of her, as they knew Hermione and Myrtle were hardly on good terms. Hermione had even contemplated sleeping in her bathtub, but decided that that was the coward's way out, and Hermione Granger was certainly no coward. But she did value sleep. It was a toss-up.

It was one of those rare days where Remus actually showed up, although he was silent and only watched James and Sirius annoy her endlessly as she worked. Or, attempted to, really. There was suddenly a lull in the commotion, when Sirius and James were looking over her many shelves of books and Remus was left occupied with his own thoughts, when an owl flew and landed rather loudly onto her desk, making her sigh and hold the owl fondly.

"Oh, poor thing, you're just like Erroll," she muttered softly, taking the letter out of his responsibility and leaving him in her lap as she ripped the envelope open and began to pet him as she read. The smile slowly began to drop during the letter, at the end pooling tears in her eyes, which the boys wouldn't have noticed if she hadn't given a sob and quickly clamped her hand over her mouth, settling the letter face down.

"Hermione?" Sirius asked worriedly as James floated nearby and tried desperately to figure out a way to comfort her.

"I-it's nothing," she said, taking shuddering breaths and gripping her desk in front of her, as if it would keep her grounded.

"It isn't nothing if you're crying," Remus stated as Sirius tried to float through the desk to try to read the letter, but she grabbed it and started ripping it up.

"It – is – nothing," she said, mostly to herself now as she set the scraps of paper on fire, pouting down at the owl as they tried to get information out of her.

"Hermione, something's wrong," James frowned at her, "Now please, tell us."

She took a deep breath before letting it out, not meeting their gaze and chewing on a nail, then suddenly giving a smile, "Nothing. Promise. Don't worry about it."

They looked doubtfully at her, but said nothing more.

The other ghosts of Hogwarts seemed to have mixed feelings about the Marauders there. Nearly Headless Nick was nearly overjoyed. The Fat Friar was positively stuffed with happiness at their return. The Grey Lady brightened up a little. The Bloody Baron barely frowned. The only one at ends with the four was Peeves, who didn't seem to like the idea of him being booted out as the pranking spirit of Hogwarts. This caused the five to constantly be at ends with each other, Hermione often being caught in the crossfire.

"Peeves!" she yelled for probably the fifth time that day, dripping wet and looking pitifully at her soggy papers. "You know better by now!"

The poltergeist gave an indignant sniff and stepped out from hiding, although the four boys only hid even more, "It seems that Professor Granger should know better as well, then." At her curious look and the boys' glances to one another, he gave a wicked grin, "Wandering out the halls and into Filch's office? Tut tut tut. Naughty naughty, you'll get caughty!" He cackled and flew away, leaving Hermione dripping wet yet fuming as he sang "gangly mangly Granger, gangly mangly Granger."

There came a snort up above her, making her look up and see Remus looking after the poltergeist disdainfully before glancing down at her, "Better than 'loony, loopy Lupin.'"

"Not by much," she said bitterly before drying herself and her papers up.

"We are _really_ sorry, Hermione," James stated sheepishly as he floated down.

"We were aiming for Peeves, honest," Sirius agreed as Peter nodded his head furiously, Remus still up above them and watching Peeves go.

School was getting closer. Granted, it was still a few months away, but with the arrival of the Marauders, she still had a mountain of work to do, and it would only get worse when the students arrived. And she was desperate, you see, and she wasn't intending to be cruel at all, she did rather like them some moments when they weren't bugging the living bejesus out of her.

"Please, please – help me get rid of them," she begged.

"Only when you tell me why we're standing in your bathroom," George said curiously, squinting at her a little as if it would make the answer easier for him to see.

"Ghosts can't come into bathrooms, it's an invasion of privacy," Hermione answered easily.

"Did anyone tell that to Myrtle?" he grinned, looking at his reflection as he fixed his hair. Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Don't get me started on Myrtle, she's next on my list, probably after Peeves."

"Oh, come on, Hermione, Peeves is a part of Hogwarts tradition," George said, leaving against her sink, "Besides – what other poltergeist would've given Umbridge hell?"

"A good one," she muttered.

"Tsk tsk, Hermione, you need to appreciate us pranksters more," George sniffed, straightening his shirt, "It's an unacknowledged art, practically a skill."

Hermione arched an eyebrow and grinned at the redhead, "You hate Peeves too!"

"Well, yeah, but only because he mucked up our pranks," he frowned before grinning and getting back on track, "So – why do you want to get rid of my childhood heroes?"

"Your childhood heroes are blooding annoying," she sighed. "Take them, take them to your shop, I don't care, just get them out of my hair."

"Alright, alright, you bossy swot," he said, "Maybe it won't be so depressing there."

She softened and looked up at him, "Things aren't better there, are they?"

He shook his head slowly, "It's really hard seeing his stuff there. Plus, I can't look in a mirror without…."

"I'm sorry, George, and I'm sorry that me apologizing isn't helping anything," she said.

He shrugged, grinning back at her, although it wouldn't reach his eyes, "Just one day at a time." He started walking out of her bathroom before turning back and grinning at her, "If you ever start to miss them, feel free to stop by!"

She snorted and rolled her eyes, "As if."

No, she hadn't meant to be cruel. She just valued sleep and a less threatening pile of work. The only reason her chest hurt was because it was overjoyed at the relief of the Marauders' departure. Not because she was _guilty_.

She hadn't meant to be cruel, after all.


	3. the Black Kitten's Fault Entirely

She wasn't guilty. She wasn't guilty. No, she wasn't guilty at all. That line wasn't working as much as it had in the beginning, if it had worked at all in the beginning. She could finally think straight now that the boys weren't there, and all she could think of was how horribly selfish she had been. They were four boys twenty years into the future without their other friends and family, all they'd wanted was some companionship. So what if they'd done it a little wrong? It was probably the first time this had happened to them, they didn't know how to handle it. And besides, it wasn't as if there was an instruction manual concerning how to stay on her good side.

She should ask George for them back. Or at least visit and tell them what had happened. She would go and do that first thing in the morning, she decided as she finished up the paperwork for the day.

The walk back to her quarters was quiet. It'd been quiet ever since the boys had left, actually. She sighed and rubbed an eye, not believing that she felt that guilty and upset over making them leave. Hogwarts was their home just as much as it was hers. She'd had no right to make them leave, simply because they were annoying her. She wouldn't blame them if they hated her.

Her mind began to wander as she did, going over her years in Hogwarts and how many memories she'd had. How much this place still felt like home even after the War, how hard it was to see it in shambles around her feet. She couldn't even begin to imagine how it must feel when you've been zapped twenty years into the future and are suddenly _dead._

Feeling horrible, she climbed into bed and pouted at the ceiling, going over all the ways she could say sorry to the boys the next day.

* * *

"Hermione. Err – Hermione? Look, I know you won't be happy with this, but it's best if you know anyway. Hermione? Hermione!"

Hermione made a frown and buried her face deeper into her pillow, clutching the ends and making a noise of complaint, also using it as a very annoyed 'what?'

George was apparently standing on her bed, if it was anything to go by the wobbly pressure and the voice, and he sounded downright nervous. "Uhm, listen, I don't think I did it, but…."

"Out with it, George," she muttered into her pillow.

"I mean, I don't _think_ I did, if I did then I should really go over my products a bit carefully," he fretted as she opened her eyes and frowned at her headboard.

"George, if you don't tell me in ten seconds, I'm kicking you," she warned crossly.

"We're back!" a voice sang, making her groan and flop back into her bed, covering her head with her blankets.

"Sirius. Great. I'm assuming the others are back as well?" she asked, still with the blankets over her.

"Uhm…not in the manner you might be thinking," James said, his voice containing a grin. As this puzzled her, she sat up and turned around only to stare blankly at the four for far longer than necessary. They were all there, of course, but this time in different clothes and – oh, let's not forget – _completely solid._

"George Weasley!" she immediately chided as Remus rolled his eyes and shut her door.

"I told you, I don't think I did it!"

"They were under your care!"

"Only because you forced them on me!"

"I asked you to, I didn't force!"

"You know my story – you knew I wouldn't say no!"

"Hi, sorry, but – _forced?_" Remus asked, looking at Hermione with a frown as she got out of bed. "Did you try to kick us out?"

"Mainly James and Sirius, but you four seemed to be a package deal, and besides – " she was cut off by Remus glaring a little and crossing his arms, speaking up once more.

"Look, I know they get annoying, but kicking them out isn't the way to go about it, especially when all they're trying to do is be nice to you," Remus stated, "You get one little ounce of power and suddenly – "

"Whoa, whoa, I'm _sorry?_" Hermione asked, standing straighter and frowning back at Remus as George hopped off of her bed and backed away slowly, James, Sirius and Peter sharing wide-eyed glances with him. "How is this about power? Better yet, how is this about me being the bad guy? I'm just trying to do my work, and I admit that sending them away wasn't the best idea, but trying to reason with them and attempting to win isn't the best idea when you've only had three bleeding hours of sleep! And besides – "

"There should hardly be a 'besides' that justifies you kicking us out of probably the only home we've got now!"

"Yeah, well – " Hermione was cut off once more, this time by a rather obnoxious ghost that frequented a girls' bathroom, her eyes rather owlish behind her glasses as she said pitifully, "Hermione, you've got a letter."

"I'll get it in a minute," Hermione snapped.

"It seems important," she sighed before floating through a wall. George held up a finger and went to go get it, making Hermione sigh and run a hand through her hair.

"Admit it – you don't like us, you want to get rid of us, and I'm going to feel _so_ sorry for your students," Remus said.

Hermione looked as if she'd just been slapped across the face before glaring even harder at him, "Look, Lupin, I never said I didn't like you, but if you think you can judge me without even knowing me, you've got another - !"

"Uhm, Hermione, what's this?" George interrupted, making her whirl around before freezing and snatching the letter out of his hand, ripping it to shreds without even looking at it.

"Dammit, dammit, dammit," she muttered before setting the shreds in a vase and lighting it on fire. She huffed and sent a curl up in the air, hands on her hips as she looked at the boys. "George, do me a favor and walk with them to McGonagall's."

George made a face and she rolled her eyes with a strained smile, "Yes, we have to tell her. I'll be there in a few minutes." He nodded slowly and walked out with them, rubbing the back of his neck and checking over his shoulder to see if she was alright. With a smile that seemed genuine, he gave a grin back and walked out of her quarters, shutting the door behind him.

_One Mississippi. Two Mississippi. Three Mississippi. Four._

Hermione crumpled into a heap, sobbing and trying to control her breathing as she thumped her head against the side of her bed, face tilted to the sky as she shut her eyes and tried to calm down.

"Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out," she murmured, dragging her hands down her face after a few moments and staring blankly at the wall in front of her. She blinked before looking down at her arm, which had been exposed the entire time, as she was wearing a tank top. With a grimace, she pressed the scar against her stomach, wishing it would go away.

* * *

"Moony, are you alright?" James muttered out of the side of his mouth, slowing his pace with his friend as they let George, Sirius and Peter go on ahead.

Remus sighed and shook his head, a frown on his face, "She really had no right to – "

"Mate, look, we knew that's what she was doing in the first place, and you've got to admit – we aren't the easiest people to get along with, it's a miracle Hermione put up with us for that long. And, if I'm going to be honest, I think you might have upset her."

"_Me_? Upset _her_? James, the only thing that would upset that woman is finding out that the Dalmatians don't have spots yet!"

"Stop making Muggle references I don't understand!" James ordered as Remus began to walk away, turning him back around and frowning at him a little, "Look, Moony, you really don't know Hermione, you barely ever hung around her whenever we were – well, you know – and I think there's a lot about her that we don't know yet."

"Those letters are fishy," Sirius whispered, having stopped and allowed George and Peter to walk on ahead, looking very seriously at his friends, "She reads them, eventually tears up, rips them up and burns them so we can't read them. Something's in there that has to upset her."

"George did talk about a war," James shrugged, walking with them now as they got a little closer to McGonagall's office. "Maybe – I dunno – somebody died and the letters are finally coming in."

"Well if they were somebody close, why would she rip them up, James?" Moony asked rather crossly.

"Maybe they were too close," Sirius suggested with raised eyebrows before gaping, "What if – what if she was _engaged_, and then her fiancé _died_ and there's this whole box of letters and they're just now being sent and she can't stand to look at them because – "

"Sirius, there's a major hole in that," Remus stated as he they drew closer to George and Peter.

"What?"

"Nobody could stand dating her, let alone to propose to her," he stated before James and Sirius both punched him in the shoulders, frowning back at their glares. The matter was dropped as soon as they caught up to George and Peter, following them up the spiral staircase to McGonagall's office.

* * *

"What's the verdict?" Hermione muttered, focusing on writing down notes to herself, glancing around her classroom as George and the Marauders walked in, their footsteps echoing in the spacious room.

"She's informed Kingsley about it, and said that she'd like them to stay at Hogwarts until any and all commotion has died down about them," George answered.

Hermione gave a hum, making George tilt his head and wonder if she was actually listening, before continuing on, as it might be a bit easier if she wasn't.

"And, since they left in like – October – they're going to finish their seventh year once the lesson plans match up."

"And before that?" Hermione looked up from her paper, looking at him curiously as he winced a little.

"Well…they're going to be your TAs," he grinned as she dropped the quill and gaped at him before settling back in her chair and rubbing at her temples.

"George?"

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Get out," she stated dully, making him roll his eyes and hop on the edge of her desk.

"It's only a few months, Hermione," he said before ruffling up her hair, shooting the four boys a grin as he walked out and began to whistle. Hermione rolled her eyes and stared down at the paper she'd been writing on as the boys waited in silence for somebody to say something.

"Well," Sirius began before slipping up next to her desk and grinning down at her, "At least we have each other."

Hermione groaned and grinned, slapping her palm over her eyes as she shook her head, "You're insufferable. You get out too."

Sirius chuckled and walked out with the others, grinning brightly at them, "At least she smiled. McGonagall never thought I was funny."

Remus rolled his eyes and continued down the hallway, "Because you aren't."

"Hey!" Sirius crowed before tackling him to the ground, ruffling up his hair once he was down there as he laughed. "Take it back!"

"I can't take back the truth!" he laughed as James chuckled down at them.

"You can take back the lies you are clearly telling!"

"Hah! We have different definitions of lying then!"

"You're a jerk!"

"You're an arse," Remus responded as he stood and tried to fix his hair, attempting to make it lie flat with little results.

"You're all so freaking weird," James rolled his eyes, although secretly glad that if he had to be stuck twenty years into the future with anyone, it was his friends. Although, he could've stood to be there with Evans. That would've been alright by him.


	4. How Doth the Little Crocodile

The first few weeks or so were…odd, but they ran somewhat smoothly. James and Sirius were trying to make up for what Remus said by being extra kind to Hermione, with charming smiles and such in the hopes that she wouldn't be upset with _them_ as well. She laughed them off, but she and Remus kept their distances, Remus acting much like he had whenever they were incorporeal. Peter was got between either, eventually just giving up and wandering along by himself. The two had hardly spoken to each other, other than a few short questions and answers or commands. She'd often bite the inside of her cheek and frown a little before getting back to work – as there was always work to be done.

She'd been thinking, as she often did. The boys weren't technically students, and therefore wouldn't be allowed up in Gryffindor dorms like they were doing currently. In fact, that would have to stop before the students came in. She'd thought about the Room of Requirement, but that would be far too troublesome, as anybody could get in and things would be lost and it would just be awful. She considered trying to find some unused rooms and change them into dorms, but realized that her easiest way to do that was ashes and was kind of the cause of why she was hunting lodging for the four boys. Not that they knew, of course, they were thinking themselves.

As it often did with the boys, curiosity was killing them. Not so much Remus, as he didn't care, but the others were aching to know what was in Hermione's letters that caused the same reaction every time. Sirius stuck fast to his engagement idea, but James shook his head and said that she would probably have a ring or something. Peter thought that perhaps they should ask her, to which the three rolled their eyes and snorted and told him that if it was that simple, they would've done it. James wasn't about to guess on what was inside them, he would rather get hold of one himself and _see_ what was inside.

Remus spent most of his time in the library. Which, come to think of it, wouldn't be all that odd, if he weren't simultaneously hiding from Hermione and researching different things. It varied from a small group of topics, but he researched all the same. He wondered how long it would take her to realize how adamant he was about escaping her, or if she already guessed. He decided he didn't care either way and went back to his own work.

While James and Sirius – and often Peter – distracted Hermione, he looked up on ways to get back to the seventies and also – and this was futile, he knew this, but he did it anyway – a cure for lycanthropy. After all, they _were _in the nineties now, shouldn't they at least have made advancements? But he couldn't find anything about a cure. He felt like hitting his head against a table repeatedly every single day this happened before going back and doing the same thing the next day.

"Knock, knock, Professor Granger?"

Hermione lifted her head before grinning and hopping up from her desk, hugging the man tightly as they laughed, "Ooh, you're awful to me! I wrote you weeks ago and you only visit now?"

The man laughed and ruffled up her hair, grinning down at her, freckles covering his cheeks and his red hair messed up from the wind, "Yeah, well, I was in Romania with Charlie, and dragons might've eaten your letter. Whoops. Now who – " Ron promptly stopped talking and stared at James, Sirius, and Peter, who had been hanging out with Hermione when he'd knocked. Hermione looked between the four and bit her lip before glancing back at Ron. "Hermione – "

"I know," she told him.

"Hermione, he's – "

"I know, Ron," she insisted.

"He looks like – holy shit, he looks just like him!"

She gave a laugh, "I know, Ron, I _know._"

Ron gave a grin and ran a hand through his hair before nodding slowly, "George told me something weird had happened. I just figured he turned your hair green again and this time it wouldn't come out."

"Hah, no, he'd be dead for that," she smiled back as James and Sirius lit up.

"Again?" they echoed before James continued, "So there was a first?"

She sighed and rolled her eyes with a grin, "Yes. And before that it was teal, but the green was the worst. I looked like a Slytherin. Eugh."

"Oh, hey, what House were you in?" Sirius suddenly seemed to remember to ask this question, making Hermione grin a little bit more.

"Daring, nerve and chivalry all the way with Hermione," Ron chuckled as he ruffled up her hair again, making her swat him away before he looked at her worriedly. "Are you going to tell Ha – "

"_No_," she said rather harshly, a set frown on her face as she dragged him out into the hallway and started to whisper, "He's just been through a war, I'm giving him a bit of a rest before I drop this bombshell on him."

"Hermione, he'd be happy," Ron insisted.

"Oh? Gee, Harry, I know you've been through this major war where you were an influential major part in it, now here's the father you've never met, only he's our age!" Hermione huffed, sending a curl up in the air as Ron held his hands up in defeat.

"Whoa, whoa, alright," he grinned, trying to calm her down, "Yeesh, a few weeks with the Marauders has really wound you up then, huh?"

"You have _no_ idea," she sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Well, I've got to get back to the dragon reserve, only stopped by to see how you were doing and what the weird thing was," Ron said before tugging on a curl and giving her another hug, "Stay sane!"

"Easier said than done!" Hermione called after him as he walked down the hallway, grinning after him before heading back inside, giving a small scream when she was immediately encountered by two curious faces. She huffed and frowned at them, "James, Sirius!"

"And who was he?" James questioned as she walked around them and back to her desk.

"A friend," she stated.

"Just a friend or – "

"Don't _even_," Hermione warned Sirius, glaring and pointing at him, "I've had the entire Wizarding World speculating and gossiping about us since I was in fourth year, and I will _not_ go through it again! Just because you're friends and you're both single, doesn't mean you're dating, I mean – honestly, that woman," she muttered the last bit to herself, James and Sirius sharing amused glances. "Horrid woman, can't keep her nose out of other peoples' business."

* * *

"Moony," James began, staring up at his bed hangings late at night, deep in thought and willing to share now, "Why do you hate Hermione?"

"She's a twat," Remus muttered sleepily back, making a pillow soar over and thump against his back, signifying that Sirius had been the culprit.

"No, really, honest to Merlin, answer that one," James said, sitting up and looking across the way at him as he groaned and sat up as well, hair already disheveled and a tired look in his eye, "I mean, she's really done nothing to you. You even stayed away before she sent us to George."

Remus sat back on his hands and thought about that for a few moments. Now, Remus wasn't too keen on meeting new people that knew things that he didn't, and could obviously use them to their advantages. Plus, before then he was still kind of upset about being dead and in the nineties, and he just really didn't like Hermione. She had a serious air about her, and looked far too stern when she was working, and he just really didn't want to deal with her. Yes, he was the most rational of the group, but there were far too many questions concerning her that he didn't like.

"She's bossy," he settled simply as Sirius got up and retrieved his pillow, sitting up on his bed and lounging on it afterwards.

"She's a professor, what do you expect?" Sirius asked.

"She acts like she's so important – gets on my nerves," he tried again.

"Ahh – gotta disagree with you on that one. She had to literally remind herself that she was a professor and couldn't do – oh shit, what was it?" James was grinning to himself as he tried to remember, "I think I only came in at the tail end of it. When I asked, she kind of grinned and said nothing."

"The world may never know," Peter muffled, eyes shut but a small smile on his face.

"She is rather mischievous," Sirius said, "I think she's not the goody-goody she'd like to have us believe."

"Good luck trying to get an ounce of truth out of her," Remus said as he fell back on his pillow.

"Well, we'll just have to go to another source then, won't we?" James grinned with Sirius when Remus sat up and arched an eyebrow before sighing, rolling his eyes, and flopping against the bed.

"How the hell I put up with you two, I'll never know," he muttered before all was silent once again.


	5. Improve His Shining Tail

"It is really good to see you, Hagrid – you haven't aged at all," Sirius said with a grin, making the giant man grin back at him from his bushy beard. The four boys had taken to chatting with the groundskeeper, each finding a friend in the large man. Hagrid knew about Remus's 'furry little problem' and would always catch him before the full moon to tell him which parts of the woods teachers were keeping a close eye on whenever James, Peter and Sirius started going out with him. And the only reason the teachers were keeping a close eye was because they had suspicions that the three were sneaking down there, only not even guessing that it was as animals. James and Sirius could talk Quidditch with him easily, and he would often tell them which substance from his garden would do for a desired effect for a prank. Peter, surprisingly, rather enjoyed the more tame animals that Hagrid had plentiful knowledge on. So they'd visited from first year up until seventh, in their minds only stopping once they'd been thrown up in Hogwarts circa '90's, but with Hagrid they'd never stopped once, even bringing Lily around often enough.

James, Sirius and Remus, in their younger years, could easily fit into Hagrid's armchair, Peter sitting precariously on the ottoman. However, as they were seventeen and hardly the same size as they were when they were eleven, only two could fit. And as Sirius and Remus had beat James to the chair, he was forced to sit on the armrest and leave Peter to his ottoman.

"Yeah, well you lot seemed t'have aged backwards," Hagrid chuckled as the four only grinned wider, shaking his head, "Ne'er thought I'd have you sitting there again. Ne'er thought you'd make a blasted map wit' cher spirits in there either though, but happy all the same."

"Hagrid, we were wondering something," James began as he poked the fire with the tip of his umbrella.

"Tha's ne'er good," he muttered, but smiled at them all the same.

"Well, we were wondering if you knew anything on Professor Granger," Sirius said, using her formal title, just in case.

Hagrid lit up as if Christmas had come early and he'd gotten a baby dragon for it, "Oh, 'ermione? Loads! Wee lil' ol' first year, but the brightest witch of her age! What d'you want to know?"

"Well, we were wondering how much of a trouble maker she was," Sirius said as Remus rolled his eyes and propped his chin in his hand, his elbow in practically the same spot it had been when they were twelve and James and Sirius were ecstatic about something, although now he didn't have to tilt his head at a weird angle for it to work.

"Trouble _maker?_ Nah," Hagrid said after a thoughtful moment before grinning a bit, "Doesn't mean she didn't get _in_ to trouble, o' course." He gave a laugh, the boys prepping for a story now, "In 'er firs' year alone, she got into a fight with a troll, snuck into the Restricted Section, snuck past Fluffy – three headed dog – made it out o' the Devil's Snare, and – Merlin, don' even remember what all was down there, and I put most of it there me self!" He shook his head, "Ahh, but she's a good one. Kept Harry and Ron sane, healthy, happy, and with good grades. Bless her heart, tha' alone would've sent most people running for the hills."

"Now who's Harry?" James asked, thinking for a moment, as this may have been the letters, only taking Sirius's theory and twisting it a little. Or maybe none at all, he realized. His mind whirling in the span of possibly two seconds, he saw a nameless man proposing to her, then only to have his life taken away from not only him, but her as well. No wonder she hadn't brought him up, only to see the letters and be reminded that whatever life she'd thought up with him wasn't happening at all.

Hagrid's bushy eyebrows raised so high, they nearly disappeared into his mane of hair, "He's yer son, o' course."

* * *

The door to Hermione's classroom hit the wall with a loud and echoing bang, making her jump and whirl around, already reaching for her wand when she saw that James was already walking towards her. She grimaced and winced, thinking for a moment as to what she could've possibly done to make him look so – well – pissed off, to be frank.

James slammed his hands on her desk and stared at her wide eyed before enunciating very clearly, "I – have – a – _son?_"

Hermione went very pale in a matter of two seconds, unaware that Sirius, Remus and Peter's heads were poking in through the doorway, watching carefully. "Uhm – "

"Were you not planning on _telling_ me or something? Like – oh, hey, totally forgot that this is the father of apparently my boyfriend or best friend or whatever the hell he is, whoops, oh well, no harm. What could've possibly brought you to the conclusion that it would be alright for you to do that?" James was kind of yelling now, and Sirius winced with Peter. First Remus, now James. Hermione's had arguments with half of the Marauders now, which is certainly not good, as that was where pranks started to be planned against someone.

Hermione glared and crossed her arms over her chest, "I thought that perhaps I should give my best friend a little bit of a mental rest before I told him that the father he never met is my TA and currently seventeen years of age."

"What?" James asked blankly, temper quickly vanishing and a curious expression on his face now, mixed with worry. "Why wasn't I there?"

"Might as well come in and sit down, the lot of you, this will be a long story," she sighed, coming around and sitting on the edge of her desk and bowing her head, thinking on how to start for a moment before continuing as they all leaned against the first row of desks. "There was a prophecy made, something silly and stupid that I can't even remember now. But it had a birthdate and gender, and two boys were born then, Harry and another friend of mine. Voldemort decided to go after Harry, and so everyone had to hide out. After some – ahh – unfortunate misconceptions with the Secret-Keeper, Voldemort went to Godric's Hollow on Halloween. Harry was one, I believe. James went first. Then Harry's mother. Harry lived with his mother's sister, who was Muggle, and went by the awful last name of the Dursley and had a horrid little boy named Dudley. Harry grew up in a closet under their stairs as basically their servant until it got close to his eleventh birthday. Letters came in to the house, slowly building up so much that Mister Dursley packed them all up and made them live in a small shack on an island. That's where Hagrid bust down the door and took Harry to get his school supplies and sent him off on the train. In my first year, everyone saw me as a bossy know-it-all, and I'd overheard Ron say it on Halloween and I just ran into a girls' bathroom and cried. I didn't know that Quirrell – who was our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor that year and had Voldemort on the back of his head underneath a turban – had unleashed a mountain troll into the school. Harry and Ron came and helped defeat it, and we've been best friends ever since.

Merlin, come to think of it, we got into a lot of trouble at school. None of it my fault, mind you, mainly Harry or Ron. Let's see, first year we got past Fluffy – three headed dog – and got out of Devil's Snare and there had something to do with keys and a potion and chess, and that was all we'd been there for. Second year I spent most of it petrified by a basilisk, but apparently they'd gone and had mischief without me. Third year we finally met Remus and Sirius, and also Peter, and fourth year – " She cast her eyes down again, a small frown on her face, "It got bad after fourth year." She shook her head and looked back up at them, "As you can imagine, Harry's had a hard life. I'm amazed he still smiles and laughs anymore. I need to know he's in the best mental condition before he gets any word of you four – and that's been hard, considering you're apparently all anybody talks about anymore – but he's mainly staying at the Weasleys' so that's probably for the best. But if I think that he'll start to blame himself, I won't do it. He's blamed himself for far too much, and I won't have him going about and being grumpy again. And, besides, if we want to get technical, neither of you are fathers."

"What?" James blinked.

"Well, you're copies from your seventh year, way before you two got married and had – "

"Rewind," Sirius commanded, making her blink now, "_Who_ two?"

"Oh – James and Remus," she smiled as they blinked and all turned to Remus, eyebrows high on their head as Remus stared at her. "Sorry, I got ahead of myself. His name is Teddy. He lives with his grandmother."

"I'm sorry, but – what?" Remus blinked at her, "I have a – what?"

"Son," she smiled, "But while Harry is seventeen, Teddy has only figured out how to take a few steps and say a few phrases."

"_Whoa!_" Sirius gaped, blinking back around at a shocked Remus, "Moony!"

"What?" Remus asked, his voice a few octaves higher as she giggled.

"He's adorable – and, you know, technically not yours," she stated before thinking out loud as Remus hung his head and rubbed his temples, "But it could be nice for you to meet him, we'll just explain the circumstances to him. He's very smart for his age, I'm rather proud. When I tell Harry, afterwards we can get everyone together at the Weasleys' – Molly wouldn't mind, she loves parties and fussing over people."

"Anything else you're excluding?" James asked, "Like, I don't know – who we got married to?"

"I did get married, right?" Remus asked, popping his head up with a serious expression on his face as she grinned a little bit wider.

"I don't know," she practically sang, "You both did yell at me."

They both stared at her for a few moments as Sirius laughed loudly, Peter grinning a little bit wider at her as well as Remus dully looked up at her.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

She grinned a little bit wider, "A little bit, yeah."

"You're evil," James sighed before grinning, "I'm sorry for yelling at you, Hermione. I was in shock."

Hermione nodded her head to him with a smile, "Thank you, James." She glanced to Remus for a moment, but when she realized he wasn't going to apologize any time soon, she turned back to James and simply said, "Lily."

They all absorbed this for all of three seconds before James hopped up with the biggest grin imaginable and pumped the air as he screamed, "YES!" He then paused and thought, "Wait – _no!_" Hermione looked at him with sympathy as he pouted, "So close to winning her over! I was _so close!_"

"I'm terribly sorry, James," she winced as he whined and thunked his head against a table, setting his chin on it and pouting before shrugging and standing again.

"Yeah, well," he said with drooped shoulders before perking up again and stepping up next to Hermione, "So, when do I meet him? I want to hear _loads_ about him. Does he play Quidditch? What position? Which House was he in? Does he look like me or Lily?"

Hermione slapped a hand over his mouth with a grin, stopping the flow of questions, "Yes, Seeker, Gryffindor, you."

She could feel James' wide grin behind her hand. "Awesome," he muffled.

"He's like _two_?" Remus asked, still in disbelief.

"Not even two, actually, now that I think of it," Hermione hummed, releasing James' head, "We've only just got over the War, mind you, and he – "

"How did that go, anyway? The War? I mean, yeah I know we've won, but…who's gone?" Sirius asked.

Hermione paused for a moment before sighing, "I promise to tell you four before you ever meet Harry and the other Weasleys. But you've got to understand – I just got out of this. It's hard for me to cope and put it behind me when I have to tell you. And I know you have to know, but I want you lot to hear it from me, because nobody else could explain it logically. I mean, I still have – " She cut herself off and glanced at her arm before looking back up and giving a false grin, "Paperwork. I still have paperwork to do. The faster I get it out of the way, the more I can tell you. Alright?"

The four boys glanced between each other before nodding, each standing up and walking out before James doubled back and pecked her on the cheek, grinning widely at her before sprinting along after his friends.

Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled as the door shut, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. It'd be hard telling them the whole truth and nothing but the truth. She didn't even want to know what would happen when she talked about Peter. It was still rather hard to be nice to him, and she was often glad that he wasn't as involved in James' and Sirius' games when it came to her.

What bothered her was Remus, really, as when he was around forty, they got along fine. But this one kept away from her and would hardly talk to her, at least not without a frown. She wondered what the hell had happened to make him hate her guts, and absently pondered if he hadn't met the portrait of Phineas Nigellus, who was still terribly sore about being stuffed in her purse for months on end. Ah well, served him right, the dodgy old bastard. Wouldn't help them at all, only really made matters worse sometimes. Ooh, what she wouldn't give to deck him. Both of them, actually. Well, she could the younger, and he'd downright deserve it, but she'd heard the boys were good duelists and doubted her skills. Plus, werewolf. Enough said.

She paused and thought about that one. Did he know she knew? Or was he staying away and pretending that he hated her so she wouldn't find out and reject him in some way.

With a groan, Hermione flopped into her chair. Those four boys distracted her from her work even when they _weren't_ there. "Brilliant."

* * *

**Alright, so – I might've tweaked Teddy's age a bit to have him start to talk and maybe totter around. Nearly two, but close. Whatever, not a big deal. Hey, I brought back the freaking Marauders – don't complain because I made a baby like, a year older.**


	6. And Pour the Waters of the Nile

"Hullo!" a voice announced, making the boys blink before smiling at the familiar blonde. She was perched on Hermione's desk, the two girls chatting about who knows what now, and was wearing a pale flowing dress that reached past her knees, currently barefoot, a loud orange shawl wrapped around her shoulders. She seemed to have a strange set of earrings that somewhat resembled radishes, but her hair was long and pale, and her eyes were either grey or blue and seemed far away. But she smiled at the four all the same. "I don't believe we formally met before. I'm Luna Lovegood."

"Xeno's daughter?" Remus guessed, making her light up a little.

"Oh yes, he said he was a prefect his last year when you were in your second," she smiled fondly, dreamily, "Thought you four were entertaining."

"Yeah, caught us all the time, but never gave us detentions," Sirius remembered before tilting his head at her, "It's weird, you know, seeing friend's kids who are our age."

"I completely understand," she nodded before turning back to Hermione, "I'm very glad you decided to talk to me about this, and I will keep your secret for as long as you want, but this is – "

"I know, Luna," she interrupted softly, "Thank you again. You can hang out with the boys if you want – I'm going to hop over to Diagon Alley and check on George."

"Ginny has been worried about him – everyone has," she said, although she hopped off the desk easily as Hermione stood and grabbed her wand off her desk.

"Alright – I'll get acquainted with my new school mates," she smiled before turning to the four as Hermione chuckled and grinned at her, winking at the boys.

"I think it's you they'll have to get acquainted to, Luna," she said before heading up the stairs from her classroom into her office to use the Floo.

They quickly understood what Hermione meant. Luna was rather odd and often spoke of some strange creatures they'd never heard of. But when they got onto the subject of friends and family, she easily told them what had happened to her mother when she was quite young, and how her father was out of his mind with worry when she was kidnapped by Death Eaters, and how very close she was with all of her friends, listing them off for them so fast that they couldn't even remember who had been the first or last names.

Remus, wanting to get her opinion as she spoke the truth quite easily and bluntly and rather politely, asked her, "What do you think of Hermione?" James, Sirius and Peter repressed groans.

"She's a very good friend, she'll do anything for anyone," Luna told him, climbing the statue of the hag that went to Honeyduke's, "Although, I am rather worried about her. She was a very major part in the war, and yet…." She trailed off before perking up again, sitting on the hag's shoulders with a faint smile, "She's a terribly wonderful person. May I ask why you asked that?"

"Just to get an opinion on her," Remus said, hoping to skirt around on what _his_ opinion on her was.

"And is it similar to yours?" Luna asked, a bit of the airiness gone from her voice, wariness in its place instead.

Sirius was praying that he would lie through his teeth just as he had when McGonagall had caught them in fifth year for skiving off on detention. Just lie, please, and you might live to see another day.

Instead, the usually intelligent one opened his mouth and told the truth, "Quite the opposite, actually."

There were a few tense moments, during which Sirius held his breath and James thunked his head against the hag's statue.

"Oh?" she said, her voice rather soft, "Why?"

"She seems rather arrogant, and stern, and to be quite frank was a twat to us in the beginning, and she has yet to get on my good side and I have yet to get on hers, although I doubt I want to," he answered.

"I disagree completely," Luna stated, hanging backwards over the hag's shoulder, "Hermione is the least arrogant person I know, anything that seems like arrogance is an effort to cover up her own insecurities. She has many, you know, but don't tell her, you'll only make matters worse. She's stern because she believes there is a time for work and a time for play, and there may be breaks in between one for the other. As for the twatty beginning, I believe that there was something about worrying about George and resisting an urge to sleep in the bathtub."

"What's wrong with George?" Sirius asked, stepping up to her and helping her down. "Why is everyone so worried about him?"

She sighed and pushed her hair behind her ears, smiling rather faintly, "George was greatly involved in the War, you know. I think everyone was. But – George had a twin, named Fred, and they were exceptionally close. Fred was killed at the Battle, and George suffered for quite some time until Hermione pulled him out of his depression and helped him recover and mourn in the proper way that didn't involve alcohol and depressing thoughts. Hermione has been worried that since she's at Hogwarts, nobody would be able to keep an eye on George and keep him from taking a turn for the worst. With you four there, I believe she hoped to lighten things up at the flat he had shared with Fred, and also for somebody to look after him. And George knew this."

She stepped up to Remus and eyed him very closely, making him take a step back and blink. "I also heard you yelled at her, which is understandable if you don't have all the facts." She pulled back and gave him a warm smile, "Next time, get all of the facts and see them in all possible angles before you yell at her. Because if she doesn't teach you not to, I believe quite a few others will."

"Was that a threat?" he asked curiously, honestly wondering if he'd been threatened by a short blonde girl who had smiled sweetly at him the entire time.

"If you like to be threatened, I suppose it could've been," she hummed thoughtfully, "I didn't mean it to be, of course, more like a warning. The Weasleys are full of overprotective boys who see Hermione as a sister, much like Ginny really is. I'd hate if you had to be reverted back to floating, as I myself rather enjoy walking."

Sirius snorted and grinned cheekily at Remus, who grimaced and nodded back at Luna before she smiled and patted his shoulder before waltzing off down the hall.

"I really must get back to help Daddy at the Quibbler, I'll see you!" she said, waving her arm over her head as she left. The boys watched her go until she turned a corner, then turning their attention on to Remus.

"Feel like a twat for calling her a twat and yelling at her yet?" James asked dully.

"No," Remus answered truthfully before walking away from them, "Insecurities and bathtub sleeping be damned, I still don't like her."

James, Sirius and Peter groaned very loudly, whining after him as he left as well.

For someone so smart, he was certainly stubborn.


	7. On Every Golden Scale!

McGonagall hated paperwork just about as much as Hermione did, Remus decided once he'd been called into the woman's office. Her Transfiguration office, that is. Despite the fact that she was, of course, the new headmistress, she was still holding her position as Transfiguration professor for another year, as it was such short notice and – really – there was no one qualified enough to take over the position after her leave.

He'd merely been walking down the hallway with Padfoot, talking and wondering about the upcoming school year, when they'd passed by her open door, making her call him in for a moment. He'd grimaced and Sirius had snickered before continuing his walk down the hallway, leaving him to go into her classroom and follow her up the stairs to her office.

Her office was much tidier than Hermione's, although then again they hadn't been bugging McGonagall as much as they had Hermione. It still looked the same, after countless numbers of times he and his friends had landed themselves in detention with her.

"So I hear," she began, a small frown on her face and a crease in between her eyebrows as she looked at a paper before glancing up at him, "You seem to have some ill feelings towards our newest professor. Is that correct?"

Remus gave a sigh and slumped in his chair. Great, he'd been called in to his former professor's office to talk about his _feelings_. How terribly _girly_. "James or Sirius?"

"Both, and Miss Lovegood," she said with a small smile as she set down her quill. "I heard something about arrogance, bossiness, and twattiness." Remus cracked a grin – McGonagall had just said twat. She rolled her eyes at him, but smiled as well. Remus had always been the more rational Marauder, and he hadn't gotten on her nerves as much as his friends had, and he made good marks and was rather quiet throughout his younger years. "Mister Lupin, while I believe it is your decision to dislike who you want to, I am just extremely surprised you two haven't hit it off right the bat."

"Why?" he asked curiously, sitting up a little.

"You have many things in common," she said rather fondly, "Rather smart, troublemakers, very protective of their friends, brave and increasingly stubborn."

"I'm nothing like her," Remus insisted moodily, looking down at his hands.

McGonagall let him think to himself for a few moments before sighing, resting her head against her hand, "I really shouldn't. But…yes – you are extremely alike. During the War, Miss Granger was captured and tortured by Bellatrix Lestrange. She is scarred and keeps it hidden, even from many of her friends, Miss Lovegood and Miss Weasley being the only ones who know, I believe. And – please, keep this to yourself – but while Bellatrix tortured her, she'd carved 'Mudblood' into her arm. She can no longer escape the word and the hatred behind it."

Guilt, unbelievable guilt washed over Remus in the matter of two seconds. His mouth dropped open and he could hear his heartbeat in his ears. "I – I always assumed she was – I never thought – I'm a –"

She waved his stammering away, looking at him sternly, "You are to tell no one, not even her, of this. But please, Mister Lupin – she's been through far too much, far too much scrutiny, and far too much judgment. She is a good person, so please – at the very least – respect her."

Remus dragged his hands over his face and nodded.

* * *

"Oy, watch it!" Hermione glared at James as he grinned sheepishly at her, hiding his wand behind his back.

"Hah, how'd that do that?" he asked, swatting out the smoke from her hair as she glared even harder at him. They looked up when the door opened, both smiling at Remus as he walked in before it quickly turned to looks of worry. "Hey, mate, you alright?"

"Fine," he lied, settling down into the chair and hanging his head, rubbing the back of his neck, staring down at his shoes. He blinked when big brown eyes and a worried expression looking up at him, tugging her curly hair out of her mouth. He cracked a small grin and moved as she popped up and looked at him curiously.

"Was that a smile?" she questioned.

"No," he said, biting the inside of his cheek to keep from doing it again.

"It was too!" she insisted with a grin before looking at him worriedly once more, "What's wrong?"

"I just – err – kind of realized we're stuck here, like it finally set in or something," he said rather lamely.

Hermione gave him a soft smile and patted his shoulder, "I'm sorry, I understand it's very hard on you four. At least it's not, like, fifty years or one hundred and you'd be completely lost or anything."

"Pfft, weird way of cheering someone up, but I'll take it," he said, rolling his eyes and standing. James thumped him on the back with a grin.

"Hey, maybe we can make up a new Map," James said as they began to leave.

"_No_," Remus insisted, Hermione chorusing with him. James sighed and flung his hands in the air, muttering about the both of them. Once the door was shut, James whirled around on his heel and arched an eyebrow at him.

"Finally set in?"

"Yup," Remus sighed.

"Feel guilty?"

"Completely," he admitted.

"Good," he said before punching his shoulder with a grin, "Glad you've started to come to your senses. Hey, she said she'd set us up with some '_moo-vies_' tonight, it'll be fun, are you going to come?"

"Sure, and it's not – no, never mind," he sighed and rolled his eyes before following him down the hall.


	8. A Loaf of Bread' the Walrus Said

"What's a Disney again?" Sirius asked, watching Hermione as she made some kind of weird girly tea for herself and popped popcorn in that weird Muggle machine. She'd told them that she was tired of paperwork and paper cuts and really, anything to do with paper, and insisted on having a fun night, and that they were welcome to come along if they wanted. This had been an immediate and obvious 'yes,' although Remus was rather submerged in guilt and his answer had been given through James, who still found the thing rather amusing. Hermione had changed from jeans and a blouse to fluffy pajama bottoms, a tank top and an old cloth jacket with her hair tied up into a weird messy bun. Remus, having a Muggle mother, had either watched or at the very least heard of the Disney movies up until his departure from the seventies. He warily eyed _the Little Mermaid, the Lion King, Aladdin, _and _Beauty and the Beast_ at the very bottom of the stack of VHS tapes.

"It's a – uhm – I never thought I'd have to explain what Disney is, hold on – well, it's a production company that produces films and animated movies. That help?" she winced up at him, setting her cup of tea – which was gingerbread tea that Winky had found and thought she might like (and did very much so that it might become a soft addiction) – and popping the button on the microwave in her small kitchen to rip open the bag and pour the popcorn into a large bowl. She was glad that McGonagall, knowing how much she had missed Muggle stuff, had tampered with that one specific room so that Muggle technology could be brought in. She'd even used it as a backup to attempt to bring Hermione to teach at Hogwarts, although she didn't need to.

"Yeah, okay," Sirius nodded before shooting her a grin and quickly reaching out a hand to grab at the popcorn and pop it into his mouth.

"No, wait, it's still - !" she began.

"Hot!" Sirius exclaimed, spitting it out in the sink as she giggled at him, making him give her a very sour expression before plopping on the couch next to James, leaving the only open spot for her to sit was next to his chuckling best friend. Remus had gotten an armchair, and Peter the other, although Remus had his legs curled up in it and was staring at a small scar on his arm and wondering where Hermione's possibly could've been and just how many others she had and where their locations were. He then screwed up his eyes slightly and dearly hoped that she wasn't skilled in Occlumency, as even though he didn't mean it in a perverse way, she might possibly think he had been.

"So, what movie do you guys want to watch first?" Hermione asked as she sat the popcorn on the coffee table and curled up in her designated seat to smile slightly at her tea. "I've seen them all already, so it won't matter to me, I don't have a favorite."

"_Bambi_," Remus muttered slightly, grinning a little when James glared at him.

"No, you made me watch Bambi with you in fourth year, and I _didn't like it!_" James frowned.

Hermione nearly choked on her tea from her laughter, which only gave Remus a small boost of encouragement, as he gave a smirk to his friend, who was probably resisting the urge to flip him off.

"Fine then – I guess I'll pick before there's any fighting," Hermione said before humming and reaching into her jacket pocket, taking out her wand and flicking it at the stack.

"_Alice in Wonderland_?" Remus asked, slightly amused as the tape flew out of its box and into the player, the screen going blue as she rewound it.

She shrugged, "It's one of my favorites."

"I thought you said you didn't have a favorite?" Peter asked curiously.

She gave a small grimace before grinning back at them, "It's a poor sort of memory that only works backward."

Remus was the only one to snort, grinning back at her before the movie started.

Throughout the entire thing, Hermione and Remus had to groan and listen to "what the hell is going on" or "is this kid on LSD or something" or "the fucking caterpillar is doing drugs too, what the hell," thus making her wave the boys at the stack once the movie was over and stand to put her empty mug in the sink.

"What's _Lady and the Tramp_?" Sirius asked, making Remus grin and roll his eyes at his friend as he sat looking at the titles.

"_He's a tramp, but they love him, breaks a new heart every day_…" Hermione sang under her breath, Remus being the only one who either heard her or paid any attention, as when she turned back to the living room, he was the only one who was grinning widely at her and nodding a little. She smirked and winked before flopping onto her previous spot and allowing James and Sirius to attempt to figure out the tape and player. When they did this without pulling the ribbon out of the tape or killing anything, she gave them a smile and a nod. They grinned back at her as the movie began, both staying on the floor and kicking their feet up behind them, making her shake her head at them with a grin as Remus settled down this time and watched curiously, as this was one that was rather new to him, as the toys apparently seemed to be alive.

After several movies, Remus opened his eyes and found that the room was very dark, a blue glow settling over everyone. He looked to the floor and saw that James and Sirius were asleep, James cuddling a pillow he'd gotten from the couch and Sirius cuddling the empty bowl that had once held popcorn. Peter was asleep as well, in a rather strange position that somewhat resembled a pretzel. Hermione was curled up on the couch, despite that she had all of it to stretch out on, and looked rather small from where he was seated. With a sigh, Remus tilted his head back and went back to sleep.


	9. Is What We Chiefly Need'

Remus awoke with a groan, his world tilting before his eyes before he strained to make them focus. The room was dark, but instead of a blue glow, the only light seemed to be coming from the moon outside. He cursed a bit, straining his neck to look around in confusion. His hands were bound and tied to the floor, he couldn't feel his wand in any of his pockets, and there were several unidentified dark masses, one of them squirming.

"'Lo?" Remus murmured, trying to sit up at all and finding it useless.

"Fucking _shit_," a voice called out in the darkness, decidedly feminine and sounding very worried. "Fucking fuck fuck _fuck_."

"Well hi to you too," he said, wiggling a little in an effort to get free, just like she was doing. "Where are we? What's going on?"

"I don't know, but I think it's a general rule that if you're bound and can't find your wand, it's not in a happy place," Hermione announced before asking, "Can you see anything?"

"Just you, James, Sirius and Peter. At least, I sincerely hope it's you guys. What about you? Anything?"

"It's not much, about the same as you. Can you try to kick one of the guys? I understand that two heads are better than one normally, but I'm a bit panicked and am mainly in fight or flight mode."

Remus whispered an 'alright,' and stretched to tap one of his friends with his foot, making him groan and sound much like James, "What do you want, you bugger? I've got a headache."

"James, take a very good look at where we are," Remus told him.

There were a few silent moments before James whispered out a very harsh "_shit._"

"Yeah, same all around," Remus said as Hermione sighed loudly, her knee outlined in the darkness before it came down forcefully, a very soft but loud _slap_ being heard as her bare foot come down on the cold stone floor. He could only imagine how she must be feeling, tied up, in the dark and in a situation similar to the night she'd been tortured. She must be freaking out, and was probably worried for the sake of them and any of her friends.

"What the hell happened?" Hermione asked. They hissed when somebody turned on the lights, squinting up at the high stone arches and some rather gruff looking faces, although there was one man who looked particularly anxious as he stepped directly over Hermione and repeatedly said "I'm not part of this, I don't want this, don't be mad at me."

"DEAN FUCKING THOMAS," she yelled anyway, kicking her legs and twisting her hips in an attempt to harm him in some way, "YOU'RE A REALLY SHITTY FRIEND, YOU KNOW THAT?"

Dean stepped away from her and grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck, "Cursing and yelling. She's pissed."

"Miss Granger," a rather stern looking middle-aged man said, making her calm down long enough to shoot him a very dirty glare as a few of the others reached down and unhooked them all from the floors, making them stand. "As you are aware, these four are from the past and have no business in being here. As this is against Ministry regulations and is without the proper consent, they will be sent back to their original time."

Hermione's face portrayed shock and worry and unadulterated fear before she glared at him and spat in his face as Dean fidgeted behind him, shooting her a fleeting grin as she was brought to her unsteady feet. "Look, in case you haven't caught up, Donovin, they're _copies._ If you sent them back, they would cause paradoxes and problems and not to mention they'd have nowhere to go. Plus, Shacklebolt has already cleared it – and, while we're chatting – why the _fuck_ did you ambush us and tie us up, you crotchety arse?"

Donovin seemed rather irritable for having been spat on and called an arse, although he rightly deserved it. Hermione was jerked into line next to the Marauders, although Sirius and Peter had just been woken up and were extremely confused.

"Simply because you aided in the war, Miss Granger, does not mean you are able to make such decisions," Donovin said.

"Yeah, but I think the Minister for Magic is certainly able. Just like I'm able to hex every single one of you for tying me up. Or are you trying to mimic her, Estoire, by tying me up to the floor and having me fight for freedom? I was aware you were affiliated with them, but I think this is rather obvious," she sneered, arms being held behind her back. "You're doing this to seem as though you're making a difference and doing the right thing in an attempt to restore your and your colleagues' reputations, aren't you? Doing the supposed right thing when the new Minister couldn't, when Hermione Granger fought selfishly for whatever personal gain Skeeter will think up for me?"

Remus's brain rushed to think of a solution, of an answer. James was between him and Hermione, and any whispered plans would be quickly noticed and caught, especially by the men holding back their arms. An idea sprung forward, and he blinked a little when a wand was pressed into his hand, making him glance back after disguising it as scratching his shoulder to see that Dean was making a very worried expression at him, several of their wands in his grasp.

"I would think, Miss Granger, that you might want another scar for your collection," Donovin smirked, making Remus and Hermione both look up and gape a little at him before she gave a very fearsome growl and pushed off the balls of her feet to reach out and kick him, although he moved back and she only kicked air. Donovin chuckled at her and smirked a little wider.

"This is all your fault!" Remus announced, stepping around James to look at her and hope that his expression gave away his plan as she blinked at him.

"My fault?" she asked, giving him a small smile and a wink as she stepped forward as well, James slumping in his captor's hold and groaning.

"Guys, really, do we have to - ?" James asked loudly.

"Yes, your fault – you and that 'movie night' – if we hadn't been in one place - !"

"Oh, please, I didn't force you to come!"

"Oh yeah?" he asked, flicking the borrowed wand and having his ropes slip off, doing the same with hers and giving a small nod.

"Yeah!" she said, a rather devious grin on her face before she reached her arm back and punched the man holding her arms squarely in the face, Remus whirling around and releasing his friends as they turned around and fought as well. There was a lot of yelling and dodging of curses and hexes, and Dean was shuffling around trying to give everyone a wand to fight with while also holding off his evil coworkers as well before it finally settled down. The Marauders looked proudly down at the three they'd helped taken down, but groaned loudly at Hermione as she stepped away from the six she'd taken down.

There was a sound of clapping, making her smirk a little at Dean as he applauded and gave loud 'woo-hoo's.

"And all without a wand, ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for Hermione Granger!" Dean said with a massive grin as he moved to her, arms outspread, "Oh, our little freedom fighter – you fill me with pride."

"Oh yeah? You couldn't have warned me that your colleagues were evil Death-Eater supporters and wanted to send them back to make me look like a tart?" she hummed, making him grimace before grinning sheepishly.

"It was on short notice – you're lucky I was here trying to earn a raise," Dean insisted before hugging her tightly, picking her up and swinging her around a little, "Merlin, no wonder we won – we had you on our side."

"She – six – she took down – " Sirius sputtered, looking back and forth at the piles of Ministry men – most of them from the Department of Mysteries, one or two others from separate departments.

"Six, yeah," Remus said appreciatively, feeling a tiny ounce of pride come in and chip away a bit of the guilt.

Hermione sighed and held up her hair, closing her eyes and trying to get her heartbeat under control. Dean went in search of her jacket, as well as her wand, while the boys settled out whose wand was whose. When that was done, Sirius stepped up to her and looked at her curiously as she opened an eye.

"Do you really – uhm…" he began.

"Yup," she sighed, turning out her arm for him and the others to see. Carved on her forearm in the pale skin, looking dark and as if it cut deep, was the word 'Mudblood,' just like McGonagall had said. James gaped as Remus stepped forward to look at it before glancing up at her. She seemed tired and worn out, and rather depressed as she held it out for them to see better, but Remus moved her arm and she gave a soft smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Here," Dean said, holding out her jacket and then her wand. She took both and slipped into the clothing, giving him a smile before hugging him. "I'm not a shitty friend now, am I?" he asked cheekily, making her snort and roll her eyes before turning to the men.

"Going to have to Obliviate them, and I guess heal them some, but I'm keeping them sore," Hermione said as Dean nodded.

"I'll rip up their notes," Dean said, slipping away once more and beginning the process as Hermione and Remus both stooped down to remove the memories from the conspirators, James helping partially with a few before Dean came back and took over his part.

"Alright, now we've gotta move them," Hermione said, pushing one into a chair and positioning them in a loose circle before Hermione cast a Disillusionment charm over the Marauders and Transfigured her pajama bottoms into jeans, zipping up her jacket partially and nodding to Dean.

"Ennervate," he muttered, making the older men snort and wake up and looked around blearily as Dean put on a look of concern before turning to Hermione, "Thank Merlin, Hermione, I knew I was doing the right thing in having you come over."

"Wha – what happened?" Donovin asked, squinting a little and trying to remember.

"Apparently you lot have been up to something dangerous – I just walked in and found you lot unconscious," Dean said, still with the worried look, "I called Hermione Granger here to help – we still don't know what happened."

They looked around in confusion at each other before Donovin stood, cleared his throat, and shook Hermione's hand, "Well, thank you all the same, Miss Granger."

Hermione masked her smirk as a small smile, "Please, Mister Donovin, it was my pleasure."

The Marauders just barely contained a bark of laughter before she led the way out, winking to Dean as he grinned back. Once they reached the Floo gates and they were visible, she grinned a little bit wider and shrugged before stepping into the fire.

The boys looked at each other before laughing a bit and following her lead.


	10. Pepper and Vinegar Besides'

Hermione was right back to depressed as soon as she stepped into her quarters, as not only was it in shambles, but now it was extremely awkward. She took a deep breath and started to flick her wand to right the furniture as the Marauders shuffled and tried to silently communicate that one of them should volunteer and ask what was wrong.

"So in my supposed seventh year, Harry, Ron and I skipped out and hid from Death Eaters," Hermione began as she started to rearrange and clean, keeping her eyes focused on her task, "Hunting Horcruxes – they're dark magic that hold pieces of your soul. Voldemort had seven. Well, we didn't know there were seven, but – anyway. We hopped all over the continent, I think, but woods just look like woods, no matter where you go. So after an unfortunate incident, we were captured and taken to Malfoy Manor. As they'd found the sword of Gryffindor, which a copy had apparently been made and put in to the mad woman's vault, in my purse, I was the lucky one to get tortured for information. When I wouldn't talk, she carved Mudblood into my arm and shot hexes and the Cruciatus Curse at me until Harry, Ron and Dobby saved me. I've still got scars all over me, and that's why you'll probably never see me in shorts or anything, and – "

"Who did it?" Sirius asked quietly, making her stop in her ranting and look over at him.

She bit her lip before turning back around and grabbing the tape out of the VCR, "Bellatrix."

"Bitch," he murmured before looking back at her again, "She dead?"

"Mm-hm," she hummed before gaining a small smile, "Molly Weasley killed her. Me, Luna and Ginny were holding her off and she kind of pushed us out of the way and said 'not my daughter, you bitch.' Best memory I've had of that entire missing school year."

Sirius grinned back at her, "Good."

* * *

The next day was infinitely better, in the beginning and end anyway. Hermione had been sitting cross-legged up on her desk, the sleeves of her pale orange blouse rolled up and an extra quill tying up her hair as she worked. As soon as the Marauders got there, though, she shoved it aside and insisted that the movie night had certainly not been fun enough and demanded a redo that day. They happily obliged and spent most of the morning telling stories of their days at Hogwarts, making her grin or laugh until Luna waltzed in and hopped onto the desk next to her, this time wearing a very long flowing skirt and a peasant blouse, a scarf masquerading as a headband, kicking off her sandals and sitting there happily.

"Daddy's given me the day off," Luna explained as she examined her toenails, "I am supposed to be buying school supplies, but I'd rather do that with Ginny. So I decided to visit you. How are you? I see you're showing that more freely," she pointed to Hermione's scar.

Hermione sighed and told her of the little adventure her and the boys had had that night. Luna only brightened up and said, "Oh, good, I'm very glad Dean is working very hard there. I was worried that the pressure of being an Unspeakable would cause him too much stress."

Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes, shaking her head at her, "I'm very glad you're worried about the right thing in that, Luna."

"Oh, no, I would be worried if you weren't all sitting here perfectly fine and alive and telling me," she stated, "Dean, however, is not present, and so I'm afraid I have good reason to worry unless my worries have been quelled. Which you have just done. So thank you."

Hermione only laughed, smiling at her before pulling back a piece of the younger girl's hair to settle it behind her ear, "Luna, you're different."

"Good different?" she asked as she pulled around a piece of her hair and settled it over her upper lip and reached it around to hook it around her other ear, pushing out her lips much like a duck and crossing her eyes. Hermione only giggled a little bit harder at her, nodding when she couldn't find words to use.

"Knock, knock!" a voice called, making Hermione freeze before hopping down and running towards the door, catching it before it opened all the way. "Whoa, quick response!"

"Harry!" Hermione said happily, waving to Luna behind her back in an effort to get the Marauders out _pronto._ "What are you doing here?"

"Well, Ron said he dropped by, and Luna and Ginny said they drop by all the time, so I figured that I should too," he smiled, absentmindedly wondering why she wouldn't open the door farther, "So – can I see it?"

"Err – see what?"

"Your classroom, duh, _Professor_," Harry teased.

"Err," Hermione checked back to see that Luna was shrugging back at her, the four boys sharing panicked expressions. "No, it's horribly messy! Come on, we'll walk down to the kitchens." She started to slip out and close the door behind her, but Harry grinned and pushed on it before she could stop him.

"Hermione Granger, making a mess? I've got to see this," he grinned as Hermione paled and reached for his arm to stop him. He certainly did stop when he saw the four inhabitants of the classroom, Luna having ducked under the desk to see if they could fit before freezing when she heard Harry walk in.

"Harry," Hermione whispered, gripping the ends of her hair and backing away from him a little and into the room, getting between him and the Marauders.

The look of utter betrayal and shock on his face only made Hermione bite her lower lip and wrap her arms around herself, backing away from him still.

"You – I – they're the…how?" he started, looking between her and James.

"Filch accidentally burned the Marauders' Map," she whispered quietly, "The copies of their spirits came into Hogwarts and somehow became corporeal. I've been wondering if maybe more and more of themselves added on when they were – "

"You didn't tell me?" Harry asked, his voice hardening.

"Oh, Harry, please don't be like this," Hermione began worriedly.

"You didn't tell me that my own _father…?_"

"Well, Harry, if you want to get – "

"Hermione, how could you? I thought you might understand, I thought you knew! But you've been keeping it from me!"

"Harry, _please_," she sounded so desperate and so very close to crying. Sirius reached up and grabbed her shoulders and began to tug her back behind him and Remus, but only made far enough that she stood right beside him before Harry spoke again.

"Hermione, you knew – I've told you ever since first year, I thought you – "

"Harry Potter, you listen to me right now!" Luna demanded, making them blink as she got out from under the desk and instead stood on top of it, frowning down at him. "Hermione has only ever been worried about you. The only reason she didn't tell you when they were spirits was because she didn't know if it would last, and the only reason she didn't tell you when they became solid was because she was worried about your mental health. You're in Auror training, you haven't been getting enough sleep and you're still in Post-War stage, and she didn't know how you would handle having your father and his friends show up and be seventeen years of age! She'd been hoping to come and visit you and explain it to you nice and carefully like she usually does, because she knew that if she sprung it on you, you'd react much like you are right now! Now you apologize to her this _instant_!"

It was silent for a few moments, during which Hermione moved and shifted a little bit towards Harry, watching him carefully before he sighed.

"I'm sorry," he began.

"I know," she smiled a little.

"I'm an arse."

She grinned a little be more, "I know. After seven years, _believe me_, I _know_."

Harry grinned back before hugging her, having her wrap her arms around his torso and discreetly unroll her sleeves to cover the scar.

"Hi!" James suddenly popped in front of Harry, grinning brightly at him as he did the same, Hermione stepping aside and letting them go. "Whoa, you do look like me! Wicked."

"He's like a carbon copy of James," Remus blinked, making Sirius chuckle and Peter nod.

"Even got the temper down to a tee too," Sirius grinned as the two looked over at him and frowned back before Harry smiled.

"Wow, it's really…wow," Harry grinned back at Luna and Hermione, who were smiling and sitting on a student desk this time. "Just…wow!"

"Really, Harry, you're so eloquent – you could put Skeeter out of a job," Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Anyone could put Skeeter out of a job," Harry snorted before beaming at her, "This is brilliant."

"Yeah, try dealing with them for two months and see if you keep the same mindset," Hermione huffed before smiling again, "Really, though, they have their moments."

"See? Was that so hard to admit?" Sirius asked.

"Yes," she frowned at him as he wrinkled his nose at her before she did the same.

"We should – I dunno – " Harry turned back to look at Hermione.

"Missus Weasley said she'd be honored to throw a party and to have the Marauders – so long as they refrain from pranking anyone or anything," Luna said for her.

"Gotta love Missus Weasley," Harry chuckled.

* * *

Hermione struggled with tying her hair up, making faces at herself in the mirror as she did. She'd changed out of her blouse and jeans and into a long sleeved dark green dress with grey leggings and black boots, making them all wonder if they should change too before she waved them away and told them that it was only because she was worried her scars would show, as the Weasleys could be rather boisterous. This only made James, Sirius and Peter squint and try to remember what 'boisterous' meant, as Remus had said it once upon a time and they'd tried to remember the meaning of it, honestly.

Luna popped through the fire, this time wearing a pale yellow dress and rocking back and forth on her heels to wait for further instructions from her friend. They talked about Flooing directly into the Burrow, but decided that it would be far too clogged up and that it was best to go with Flooing to the Hog's Head and then Apparating to the Weasleys' backyard. They did this, and once they were ready to Apparate, Hermione grabbed Sirius and Remus's arms while Luna grabbed James and Peter's, grinning brightly at one another before quickly saying 'one-two-three – GO!'

The boys fought to regain their balance as Hermione and Luna laughed and argued good-naturedly with one another over who had won, walking through the garden gate and up to the back porch, where George waved happily at the girls and pecked them both on the cheek before motioning the Marauders inside the strangely structured house.

Once inside, it was full of light and warmth and people. Harry found them soon enough and smiled before trying to point out who was who and quickly decided that too many people were moving and he'd try to do it later. Ginny had slipped up next to him and greeted the Marauders before launching in with Harry, Sirius, James and a half-interested Peter about Quidditch tactics. Remus felt something wrap around his wrist and looked to see that it was Hermione, who was silently pulling him away and out of the kitchen, into the living room and a small corner where an older woman was sitting with a tiny body in her lap.

"Andromeda," Hermione said softly, making her look up at her, "This is Remus. I think it would be a very good time for him to meet Teddy."

The older woman smiled before lifting the tiny body up and down onto the floor. The child had bright blue hair and grey eyes, looking happily up at Hermione before tilting his head at Remus as he kneeled down and looked at him.

"Teddy," Hermione began, still standing, "This is Remus. He's a time traveler. If he'd continued on in his time, he would've been your father. But since he's with us, he technically isn't."

"Nah dah," Teddy said, grinning and holding out a pudgy hand to Remus, who quirked a grin and tilted his head at him, "Nah dah."

Hermione smiled and sat down next to Remus, "I think he might be saying 'Not Dad.' Not entirely sure, however."

Remus chuckled and poked his index finger into the boy's palm, nearly taking up most of the space there as he curled his fingers around it and tugged lightly, "How about just Moony, alright?"

"Juh moo," he said, making Remus laugh, which made the little boy grin wider.

"Moony," Remus said slowly, making Teddy bob his head a little. "Can you try that?"

"Moon," Teddy said, reaching out and touching Remus's face, amber and grey looking out at each other, nearly identical wide grins on their faces – although, Remus had much more teeth.

"Close enough," Andromeda chuckled from her chair.

"Moon-y," Hermione said, grabbing Teddy and lifting him up into the air as she fell back onto her back, grinning widely at the giggling little boy, "Moon-y, come on Teddy, we got you to say Minnie for me."

"Mooooonyyyyy," Teddy sang, grabbing at his feet as he still giggled at Hermione.

"There we go!" Hermione popped back up and hugged him as he continued to laugh before she lifted him up and offered him to Remus, who hesitated before grabbing him and setting him in his lap.

"Aww, look at the little guy," James cooed, stooping down and making Remus look up before smiling back at him. "He's so cute and…blue?" He glanced at Hermione questioningly.

"His mother was a metamorphagus," Hermione offered as she rested her back against the leg of Andromeda's chair.

"Aww, now you can lose him so easily in a crowd of children," Sirius said, making Remus shoot him a very dark glare.

"He rather prefers blue – and, if memory serves correct, that was your favorite color to turn Narcissa and Bellatrix's hair before you had a wand to reign your magic in," Andromeda said, smirking a little at Sirius as he blinked at her, "Really, you just couldn't fall back on that excuse anymore."

"And…how did you know that?" Sirius questioned.

Andromeda sighed and Hermione shared a sympathetic look with her before the younger answered, "Sirius, that's Andromeda."

"Andy? No way!" Sirius grinned before gulping in a huge intake of air, right as Remus was passing Teddy to James, which was perfect as Sirius bowled him over, "_You married my cousin's daughter? You prick!_"

"What?" Remus asked, struggling to right himself as Hermione, James and Andromeda laughed. "Sirius, I didn't marry anyone! I'm seventeen!"

"You were right," Andromeda grinned to Hermione, "That was funny."

"Thank God he passed Teddy off first though," Hermione said as she stood and took a squirming Teddy out of James' arms and hooked him onto her hip, kissing the little boy's cheek. He gave a happy little squeal before burying his face into her hair, coming back out of it with the same brown curls and brown eyes, making Hermione grin brighter and hug him a little tighter. "Ooh, you know I love it when you do that. I should never catch you in trouble – you always know how to get out of it. Sometimes I think you're too cute for your own good."

Dinner with the Weasleys was quite an interesting experience. Harry did manage to tell them who was who, but by the time he was done dinner was done with, the dishes were clean, and everyone was outside and messing around. Charlie and Ron seemed to team up with Bill and George to torment Hermione, Charlie even picking her up and slinging her over his shoulder once. She'd laughed and thumped him in the back as Ginny bounced around her friend with pent up energy, Luna quietly stalking a firefly. Andromeda had let Remus hang out with Teddy, who seemed fascinated by the grass and was quite content to sit in the loose circle of Remus's legs and yank out the peculiar green threads and offer them to him, making him smile and thank him before putting them in the pile behind his back. James was talking with Harry, and Sirius was talking to Andromeda, and Peter was quietly talking to Aubrey, Percy's girlfriend, who was the only one who hadn't needed to be taken out of the room at some point and talked to by Hermione.

"That was fun," James said as he thumped onto Hermione's couch, already closing his eyes, a wide smile on his face.

"It really was," Hermione said, taking her hair out of its hold and sighing when the pressure released on her scalp, shaking her head to get it to loosen more. Sirius yawned and flopped in the floor, Peter regaining the armchair he'd had the night before and Remus sitting on the arm of his own. "Did you like him?"

Remus nodded and smiled up at her, "He's really brilliant."

She smiled back, "Yeah. Well boys, I'm going to head to bed – oh!" She seemed to remember, "Get up rather early tomorrow, we have work to do." The four groaned and flopped and she chuckled before heading up the few steps to her bedroom.


	11. Are Very Good Indeed --'

"Rise and shine, boys, we've got a busy day ahead of us!"

There were several groans as the Marauders each stuffed their heads under pillows or blankets and tried to ignore her presence. Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes and pulled out her wand, flicking it at their curtains to make them fly open and let even more light in. She grinned and laughed when James and Sirius groaned louder and hid more from her, whereas Remus sat up and looked at her sleepily, his hair severely messed up. Peter just thumped his head against his pillow.

"Come on, this is important," Hermione insisted.

"Are we in any danger?" Sirius asked, rather tauntingly, as he was not about to get up if it was something less than an emergency.

"You will be if you aren't dressed and downstairs in ten minutes," Hermione said, smiling sweetly at him and twirling her wand a little before stepping out of the dorms.

Ten minutes later, the boys were indeed dressed, but were piled up at the bottom of the stairs, Remus on the bottom and laughing as he fought with his friends. Hermione watched in slight amusement as they argued good-naturedly over something, ruffling each other's hair and poking one another with elbows. Hermione stood and looked down at them, crossing her arms over her chest. Remus was the first to notice and blush slightly, making her purse her lips and try not to grin.

"Alright, get off. Guys, get _off_," Remus demanded. They all stopped and looked up at Hermione, grimacing a little.

"At least you're dressed," she sighed, rolling her eyes and turning around as they untangled themselves.

* * *

"Hermione, this isn't a very good idea."

"Why not?" Hermione asked, not turning around from going down the tunnel, the light from her wand showing the way.

The Marauders were extremely nervous whenever she'd gotten closer to the Whomping Willow. They were beyond nervous when she grabbed a stick and poked the knothole. They were nearly having heart attacks when she climbed in and waved them in after her. They'd been trying to convince her to turn around and go back many times, but Hermione proved to be very stubborn.

"It's haunted!" Sirius finally exclaimed, making her turn around and look at him with an amused smile on her face.

"Right. Haunted. Sure," she said, trying to keep herself from grinning.

"No, really, very nasty, terrible ghost that lives there, you don't wanna – " James began before a shocked Remus cut him off.

"You know, don't you?" he asked rather loudly.

Hermione finally smiled and nodded before continuing on.

"You know!" Remus said as he followed after her, "How did you – what the – how the – "

"Yes, I know, and yes, I'm fine with it," Hermione said, smiling up at him before continuing down the tunnel and leaving them blinking after her.

"This woman," James said in exasperation, walking with Remus before he was left in the dark. He gave a yelp when something brushed past his leg, making him see the outline of a dog with a rat on his head and frowning after them as Remus sighed and shook his head.

"So you knew this entire time and didn't feel like sharing?" Remus asked Hermione once they'd made it into the Shrieking Shack, frowning at her as Sirius wagged his tail and gave a happy little bark, nudging Hermione's hand with his nose.

"It's not as if I ever had a chance to say – 'oh, hey, I know you're a werewolf and I'm fine with it,'" Hermione snorted.

"Hermione," James cut in, arching an eyebrow at her, "What're we doing here?"

"Well, school is about to start up soon, and you can't stay in the Gryffindor dorms," she stated, going up a few rickety steps, "Mainly because there's not enough room. So we're going to redo this place and make it decent."

"But what about - ?" Remus began, eyeing the scratched and torn room they were currently in.

"That, we'll discuss on a later date with Professor McGonagall," she said with a soft smile before nodding them up to get them to work.

Once they were done, it was night and they were exhausted, laying on different pieces of furniture and admiring their good work. The four boys each had their own rooms and got to decorate them to their liking, Hermione working on the living room, dining room and kitchen once she'd expanded the space on the inside to make everything fit. When she was done with that, she even went back down into the basement and got rid of the torn bed, nightstand, chair, basically everything that was down there and put in another couch and a few chairs, as well as a fireplace.

"We'll hook it up to a restricted Floo system later on this week," Hermione stated once Remus had poked his head in to ask her something and seen what she'd done with the room.

Remus looked at her curiously before going with whatever would give him the simplest answer, "Restricted?"

"Well, only a few people can come in, and we can also limit your exposure to the outside world," she stated before frowning, "Sadly enough, many people will be bothering the lot of you for quite some time. You'll have to let us cool it down before you four leave Hogwarts. Hogsmeade is fine though, we've had agreements from everyone that it is off-limits there."

"Thank you," Remus stated, making her blink a little. "Thank you for doing all of this for us."

She smiled back, "Don't worry about it."

And they'd gotten right back to work without another word.

Now, however, they were tired and Hermione debated on whether or not to sleep on their couch, rather than make the trek up to the castle alone, in the dark.

"I'm starving," Sirius announced suddenly, frowning at the ceiling.

Hermione chuckled and sat up, "I can imagine so. We missed lunch."

"We missed _lunch?_" Sirius asked rather loudly, his friends laughing at him as he gaped at her.

"Merlin, he's just like Ron," a new voice said with a sigh, making them look and smile at Ginny and Luna, who held a few paper bags of food.

"We didn't know what you wanted, so we just got whatever seemed like a good idea," Luna said, offering a paper bag to James and accepting his thanks with a smile.

"Of course, we know Hermione's favorite," Ginny grinned, swinging a bag a little and smirking at her friend.

"You're too good to me," she smiled back, taking it from her and hopping up on the counter as she reached in and got a burger and fries, biting in and glaring at Ginny as she looked smugly at her. "What?" she asked once she swallowed.

"I also got another favorite," she sing-songed, holding up a white container and making Hermione's eyes widen. "Now the question is whether I saved any for you or not."

"Please!" Hermione said, hopping down and chasing after the redhead as she cackled and ran around the house, "Ginny, you know I love those!"

"You know I do too!" she called as the others watched in amusement.

"Are they always like this?" Peter asked, making Remus shrug and Luna nod.

"Oof!" Ginny cried, making them lean to look into a library to see that Hermione was sitting on Ginny's back and happily opening up the container before her face fell.

"Aww!" she cried, frowning down at Ginny as she chuckled.

"Hermione!" Luna said, holding up another box. Hermione lit up again and bounced over to her, taking it from her and opening it up before grabbing a plastic fork and abandoning her burger for a moment and digging in.

"Mmn," she hummed through the mouthful of lava cake. "Luna, you're brilliant."

Luna gave a slight bow before taking a bite out of the other end of Hermione's burger, Ginny taking a few fries from her and eating them as well.

"Well, we know her one and only weakness," Sirius grinned at her.

"I have a few, actually," she smiled back, "You'll probably learn them all eventually."

"And do you always act like that when they're in reach?" James asked with a chuckle.

"Why do you think they limit me?" she grinned back.

"You should share," Ginny told her, making her look at her dully.

"I'm sorry, but I didn't complain when you ate my fries," she said.

"Luna ate part of your burger!" Ginny cried.

"Luna took a bite out of it, and she gave me my cake, unlike _somebody,_" she looked at her pointedly before Ginny groaned and huffed.

* * *

"G'night, Hermione," James said quietly, patting her hair and settling a blanket over her before flicking the lights out with his wand as Sirius cleaned up the mess in the kitchen with his, Remus coming up from the basement and Peter coming in from looking at the exterior and comparing it to the interior.

"Night boys," she muttered, making them blink before smiling back at her and going in their new rooms. She brought the blanket up to her chin and sighed, curling in a little bit more to the pillow and wondering which of the Marauders would sit on her by accident in the morning. With a small grin at that, she fell asleep.

* * *

Remus woke up with a lurch and was already out into the living room before he even knew what was going on, wand out and ready for another fight with Donovin or whoever. He was surprised, however, when he saw that there was no danger, and only Hermione sitting up on the couch with her hands covering her face, whispering something to herself.

He lowered his wand and glanced at his friends' doors. They'd taken to putting on silencing charms whenever they'd learned them in school to keep plans for pranks from their goody-goody dorm mate until he moved to Durmstrang in their third year. Remus had dropped them, but the other three still kept them from force of habit. And he guessed that, tonight, he was glad that they hadn't heard the scream and panicked just like he had.

"Hermione?" he asked, his voice just above a whisper as he walked closer to her. He saw her head jerk up and her voice catch before he sat down next to her legs and cast a small glow with the tip of his wand. She was pale and shaking, her hair sticking to her face from sweat or tears. She was looking at him with wide eyes, still breathing heavily from whatever night terror she'd had.

"Remus," she breathed before wincing a little, "You heard."

"What happened?" he asked, not even going to ask if she was alright or not, as it would only give her an opportunity to lie and say that she was fine.

"It – was – her," she said breathlessly, "She was – she was back and she – and she tortured me again and I couldn't do anything to stop her and I was…." She lowered her head onto her knees and took shaky breaths, Remus soon realizing that she was crying. Now, he'd never dealt with a crying girl before, and this was quite a new experience for him.

"Hermione, it was just a dream," he said, attempting for a soothing tone of voice as he awkwardly patted her hair.

"It felt too real," she murmured, shaking her head. Remus thought for a moment before reaching and grabbing her shoulders, making her lift her head to look him in the eye.

"Hermione, she is dead," he said slowly, "She can't harm you. And if she tried, we would certainly stand in her way."

She nodded slowly, the corner of her lips twitching whenever he gave a soft smile.

That morning, James found them asleep on the couch, Hermione with her feet curled up onto the couch and her head resting on Remus's shoulder, his head tilted onto hers. That morning, James quickly backed into his own room and told Sirius and Peter to sleep in as well.

* * *

**Ugh, I'm sleepy. And, for some reason, have been having recurring dreams involving a certain shop that lets you serve your own frozen yogurt for the past few nights. The last one was weird, as my friend Jenna told me "hey Emilee let's go to Goody's [the name of the shop]" and so we got in her car, which in reality does only have three doors, but it was yellow with black trim and the doors opened up instead of opening out and the inside was like the freaking Batmobile and I literally woke up and questioned my sanity.**

**I don't even know, guys.**


	12. Now If You're Ready, Oysters, Dear'

Hermione Jean Granger was not in a very good mood. Of course, the Marauders couldn't take the hint, but all she really wanted that day was to be alone with a book. She had several new forms to fill out, which made absolutely no sense to her as they seemed to contradict themselves several times, and they were due by four-thirty in the afternoon. Seeing as it was two-thirty and she hadn't even finished the first form, she was not in a very happy mood.

And, to top it all off, it was the same night that she had to go to the freaking Gala. I mean, who held _galas_ anymore anyway? The Ministry, that's who. In an effort to properly thank those who had participated in the good side during the War, they were having a very big fancy ball, gala, jubilee sort of get together. When George had dropped by to tell her, a look of disgust immediately appeared on her face and caused George to drop his bored expression and laugh at it. He shared her feelings and said that he would quite happily stag it. This only horrified Hermione more when she found it was expected to bring a date.

She decided that she would call in sick, or injure her leg – possibly vanishing all the bones in it, which she knew would be quite painful but, then again, so was the Gala – or find some other way to get out of it. She did not like balls or galas or really any parties of any kind, as she was meant to say or do proper things and not give a loud sigh and tell everyone to screw off. She dreamt of doing that several times during the Yule Ball, actually, and she was rather proud to admit it. Viktor, who was actually a very good friend and only wanted the hordes of fan-girls to leave him alone, had laughed and gleefully told her that she should, just so he could watch.

"Ooh, you've got a murderous look," Sirius said gleefully, putting his chin on the other side of Hermione's desk as she blinked and looked down at him. She hadn't noticed that she'd been ignoring her paperwork and instead glared at the air towards the ceiling with her hand holding her head up. "Who are we killing?"

"Whoever gives me paperwork and orders me to go to events I don't want to go to," she answered with a pout and slumped back in her chair.

The Marauders were awfully nice, actually, once you got to know them rather well. James was quite nice and comforting and always coaxed Hermione out of any bad moods to get her to do something she knew she had to do, such as horrendous paperwork or leaving Sirius alive. Sirius was good for a laugh and new how to get her to smile or grin, even if it was at his expense. Peter, surprisingly, was rather organized and helped Hermione with her bookshelf and folders of paper, and he also knew loopholes in some legal papers that would grant her some help. When asked, he'd grimaced and admitted that his father was a Wizarding lawyer, and therefore he knew a loophole when he saw one, even at the age of three. Sadly, he'd said, it was only with boring legal work, and of absolutely no use in his time at school, but Remus was rather good for most everything else, according to him.

Remus, though, was quite harder to befriend than the other three – although, she hardly counted Peter as a friend, more of an acquaintance who she was nice to – what with the betrayal and all his older self had done in the past. Whenever she thought she'd made progress with the young werewolf, she was left finding that she'd gone two paces back. Of course, Remus didn't see it as that, but this was unknown to Hermione. While he no longer looked at her dully or with a slight glare, he now looked at her curiously or even in – and damn it, if this were the case, she'd hex him – pity.

Hermione Granger was certainly _not_ one to be _pitied_, thank you very _much_.

"You okay?" Sirius asked, making her blink and look at him innocently as he looked at her rather curiously. "I just said like a whole bunch of shit about a plan of attack and you just kept staring at the chandelier."

"Oh," she blinked again before shaking her head and going back to the paperwork, "I'm fine. I just can't seem to wrap my head around these forms. And they're due at four-thirty."

Sirius was silent for a moment before he announced, "It's two-fifty."

She groaned and thumped her head against the papers, hoping that there wasn't any wet ink to get on her face.

"Hey, let me help," he stated, holding out his hands as she picked up her head and looked at her curiously. "No, really, let me see them." She wordlessly handed over all of the papers, making him grab his wand and mutter something at them dully before an invisible hand wrote on them. He grinned and handed them back to Hermione, who blinked and saw that it looked as if somebody had written in highlighter just what exactly the papers meant. At her arched eyebrow, Sirius sighed and dramatically flopped into one of the chairs with an arm over his eyes. "I wasn't always the carefree, handsome prankster you know today, Hermione." At her snort, he pulled his arm back to shoot her a glare, although a corner of his mouth tugged up, "Shush, you." He sighed and sat up a little, rolling his eyes, "It is true that before I left my horrible family and went to James', they…they taught me…" He stifled a sob, and Hermione rolled her eyes at him before he continued, "They taught me how to do…_paperwork!_"

"No!" she gasped, playing along, her eyes widening and jaw dropping.

"Yes!" he exclaimed fervently, grinning a little that she was going along with him. She was fun, he admitted, even for a professor, and just needed to learn when to loosen up a little. "I was twelve! Twelve-year-olds shouldn't have to know how to do paperwork!"

"The injustice!" she said gravely, trying to keep herself from grinning madly back at him.

"Anyway," he said normally, giving a shrug, "Picked up that nifty little spell and it saved me loads of time."

"For things such as pranking?" she asked with a small, knowing smile.

He grinned back, "It's scary how well you know us." He stood and clapped his hands, "Well, I'll leave you to your nasty paperwork." He leaned forward and dropped a kiss to the top of her head, "See you."

As he walked out of her office, he couldn't help but grin when he heard her mutter "Big flirt" under her breath.

* * *

"I'm not going!" was what greeted James, Sirius and Remus when they'd walked in to Hermione's quarters. They were only up there to see if they could watch a movie, as Peter was happily spending his time befriending the House Elves of Hogwarts and hadn't heard them when they'd asked if he'd wanted to come along.

The three blinked between one another before seeing that Ginny, Luna and another girl they didn't know were sighing, sharing dull looks between one another.

"Hermione, we don't want to go either, but it's best just to go on and get it over with," Ginny called through the closed door.

"I'm not _going_!" Hermione repeated, making Ginny roll her eyes before sitting down on the few steps that led up to Hermione's room, shaking her head at the three boys.

"'ermione," the other girl said, her accent strange, although she looked as though she could pass for Luna's older sister. "You 'ave been a very powerful part in ze War. Zey will be mad zat you are not zere."

"Tell them to screw off for me, then," Hermione prompted, making the boys grin with Ginny, who smoothed down a pale blue dress and rolled her eyes.

"Hermione," Luna said airily, stepping up and pressing herself against the door, "I have heard that there will be alcohol there."

There was a long silence before Hermione hummed, "Tempting, but no dice."

"Oh, you are insufferable, 'Ermione Granger!" the accented blonde declared.

"Funny, that's what she says about us," James noted, making Hermione laugh from inside her room.

The other blonde turned and glanced at them dully before doing a double take and tilting her head, her eyes growing wide before she pointed and dully stated, "Marauders?"

"Yeah," they nodded.

"Fleur Delacour," she stated before blanching and blushing, "Fleur Weasley, actually." At Ginny's smothered grin, she pointed a finger and glared, "Oh, shut it. I still forget. And do not tell Bill."

"Aye-aye, ma sœur," Ginny saluted with a cheeky grin.

"Hermione," James stated, standing behind Luna, as she was still pressed to the door, "Do we need to go in and drag you out?"

"Want to see what would happen to you if you tried?" she asked, making him blanch and step back.

"Err, no," he admitted.

She opened the door with a sigh, blinking when Luna stumbled before straightening herself out, "Fine. You win. I raise the metaphorical white flag and surrender. I am now your captive to torture and torment." She winced as Fleur grabbed her wrist and began to tow her towards the bathroom, "Just, please, have mercy upon my soul." Fleur gave an unladylike snort and rolled her eyes, shoving her in and giving a very pretty grin to the group.

"Back in a moment," she said before shutting the bathroom door.

"What's all of this about, then?" Sirius questioned.

"There's a Gala tonight for those who participated in the Second Wizarding War," Luna stated, twirling around on one leg and watching as her pale orange dress floated around her. When she came to a stop, the hem stopped above her knees in the front, but stopped at her calves at the back, her sleeves transparent and going past her hands. Ginny stood and motioned to her own dress with a frown, making them notice that the skirt was rather poofy, due to whatever it was that held it out, but her sleeves were short and for this she seemed grateful.

"My mother," she said to their curious looks as to why she would choose a dress she obviously didn't like. "Thank Merlin that Fleur deflated the awful shoulder poofs, or else I would've barricaded myself in Hermione's room with her."

"None of us really want to go," Luna announced, "We all think it's terribly stupid, but the Ministry people – "

" – who did _nothing,_" Ginny interjected dully.

" – they insist," Luna finished with a shrug.

"I must say," Fleur said proudly as she stepped out of the bathroom, "You look better zan you did at ze Yule Ball, 'ermione."

Hermione followed with a sigh, looking at her reflection in a nearby mirror with a frown. Fleur had quickly pinned her hair up, a lone curl bothering the witch by her right ear, and easily painted her face. Hermione gave a grimace as her lips were startlingly red. That would take ages to get off.

"I'm going to go get dressed, I'll help you when I'm done," Fleur stated before picking up two large beige bags and going into Hermione's room.

"I don't need help getting dressed, I'm not _three_," Hermione grumbled with a glare at the door.

"I dunno," Remus started, "Padfoot still needs help getting dressed, and he's seventeen." At Sirius' glare, he gave a grin.

Hermione smiled as well, "Yes, but not all of us have Sirius' low IQ."

"Hey!" he barked, glaring at them as they grinned wider.

"Guys," James sighed, Luna patting his shoulder in sympathy.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, Sirius," she pouted, although there was a glint in her eyes that the boys didn't recognize. She inched closer to him, tiptoeing and pecking him on his left cheek, making him blink and look at her curiously, although a small smile was on his face.

Ginny and Luna shared pointed looks with one another before Fleur called in Hermione, making her wrinkle her nose and shuffle into her bedroom.

"Padfoot," Remus laughed, pointing at his own cheek, "You've got something on your face."

Sirius glanced at the mirror Hermione had just glanced into and sighed at the red lip print marking his cheek. He rolled his eyes and walked into the bathroom, muttering about how they really needed to work on Hermione's pranking skills. Luna and Ginny just shared the glances once more, a small smile marking their faces.

When the two girls came out, James and Remus both blinked. They'd only ever seen Hermione in jeans, t-shirts, and the occasional blouse, even seeing her in poofy pajama pants and a tank top, but she looked quite different in the dress. It was black, and had no sleeves, and Hermione looked as if she wanted to curl up in a hole and die, one hand twisting at her thigh to see that there was a rather large slit up the side of the dress. Her cheeks were rather pink, and she was practically daring the boys to say anything.

"Wow," James finally announced, Remus nodding his silent agreement when Sirius came out of her bathroom and held up a red tube, looking furious and still with the ridiculous lip print on his cheek.

"Twenty – four – hour – lipstick?" he asked, making Hermione grin cheekily at him. "Twenty-four _hours?_"

"Oh dear, look at the time, really must be off now, boys," she said, heading towards the fireplace with Ginny and Fleur in tow, "You can hang out here if you'd like!"

Luna looked up at Sirius and motioned for him to bend down, making him start to thank her before she pecked his forehead. He stopped thanking her and glared as he straightened up, James and Remus sniggering at the light bronze lip print up above his eyebrows.

"You have on the same kind of lipstick too, don't you?" he glared.

"No," she said innocently with a smile, making him sigh a little, "Mine is bronze." As he resumed his glaring, she grinned and waved happily to James and Remus before skipping towards the fire. Once she was gone, the two boys leaned against each other and laughed at their friend's expense as he growled and went back to the bathroom in a futile attempt to get the lipstick off his face.

* * *

"It's an elephant, though," James insisted, staring at the television screen, "It weighs, like, a lot. How can it fly?"

"Really?" Remus asked in amusement, making him turn his attention over onto him instead, "You fly on a broomstick nearly every day, you've taken classes for magic for seven years, you travel through the fireplace, but you can't believe an elephant can flap his ears and fly?"

"It's sketchy," he decided before looking over the back of the couch and towards the bathroom, "They gone yet, Pads?" He grinned back at Remus when the grumbling ensued, who only chuckled and shook his head. "They've been gone a long time," James noted, "When do you think they'll be back?"

"I don't think _they_ will be back, James," Remus stated as he gained a confused look, "It's more than likely just Hermione."

"Oh," he said dully, looking up at the ceiling, "Yeah."

About that time the fire roared, making them look and see that Hermione was gripping tightly onto George, who had an amused smile on his face.

"You can let go of me now," she sighed dramatically, making George chuckle as James and Remus blinked at one another.

"Hermione, you're holding on to me," he stated.

She blinked back at him and nodded slowly, "Oh. It seems that I am." She stepped away and pulled her arms to her sides before grinning brightly at him, "Ta-da!"

"Yay," he chuckled before turning to James and Remus, "Do you lot think you can watch her? We've never had a drunk Hermione on our hands, so – "

"She's _drunk?_" Sirius asked gleefully, stepping out of the bathroom and grinning brightly at the inebriated witch, who was swaying slightly in her kitchen as if she were dancing. James stood as Remus shooed Sirius back into the bathroom to try to get the lipstick off, making George arch an eyebrow but say nothing about the matter.

"Yeah, we'll watch her," James promised.

"Thanks, mate," George said before yawning, fighting back another one as he undid his tie, "It was dull as fuck, so I don't blame her for drinking. Nearly wish I could've, but we didn't need both of us drunk. Anyway, I think I'll head home. Expect Harry to call in the morning though."

"Night, George," they called before he stepped through the fire.

"We should do something," Hermione said excitedly, grinning up at James, bouncing on her now bare feet, as she'd kicked the heels off the moment she could. "We should – we should – uhm," she frowned and stopped bouncing for a moment before shrugging and grinning again, "I dunno!"

"Hey, how's about we try calming you down and getting you to sleep?" James asked as Remus stood a little behind them and watched in amusement.

Hermione wrinkled her nose and shook her head, "Nuh-uh! I feel wired! Like I could take on the world! Ooh! I should do that!"

As she moved to the fireplace, James reached out an arm and wrapped it around her waist, towing her off of her feet as she pouted childishly at Remus.

"Hermione," James said sternly as Remus tried to stop laughing, "You should get some rest. You can take on the world tomorrow."

"Fine," she sighed loudly before staring at her hands blankly before she frowned slightly. "I forgot how my hands work."

James sighed and moved her to sit at the end of the couch, Remus sitting in the chair next to it and smiling as James climbed on the back of the couch and sat behind her, gently digging through her hair to get the bobby pins out.

"I'm surprised you're here," Hermione stated after a few moments, staring thoughtfully at her hands in her lap.

Remus arched an eyebrow at James, who looked curiously back at him before going back to his task.

"Of course we are," Remus said.

"No, not _we_ – _you_," she insisted, bringing her big brown eyes up to look at him as he blinked. "You hate me."

Remus winced and sighed guiltily, leaning a little bit closer to her, "Hermione, I don't hate you."

"Yes, you do," she insisted pitifully, a pout forming on her face, "Everybody hates me. They've always hated me. 'Bossy swot.' 'Bookworm.' 'Little Miss Know-It-All.'" She gave a sniff and looked forlornly at her hands, rubbing a finger over her arm and having some makeup come off to reveal her scar. "I was always picked on when I was a kid. I had bushy hair and buck teeth and all of the other children hated me. I dreaded going to school because of them. I was so happy when I got accepted to Hogwarts – I thought things would change." She brought her knees up to her chest, setting her arms on top of them as she stared sadly at the scar, "They didn't. The only reason Harry and Ron are friends with me I think is because I helped them with their homework. Luna is a very good friend, and George, and Ginny, but only because I got to know them through Harry and Ron. If anything should happen between me and them, I think I would be alone."

"Hermione," Remus interjected, bringing her big brown _sad_ eyes to look at him once more, "I don't hate you. The reason I might've at the beginning was because I was…envious."

She scoffed at him and shot him a dry look, making him roll his eyes. Even in her state, she could manage a look like that?

"I thought you were pureblood, I thought that you had everything easy," Remus said, James listening intently as well, "I thought you never had to go through all of this judging and shit that I usually did whenever somebody found out I was a half-blood, let alone if anybody found out I was a werewolf. And you – well, you're terribly infuriating. You had all of the answers and I had nothing. I was jealous and confused, and I'm sorry."

She stared at him before dropping her knees and looking at him before blinking when Sirius dropped down next to her with a sigh, the lipstick still on his face.

"Siri!" she said happily, making him glance over at her and grin.

"Hey," he grinned happily.

"Want to know something?" she whispered loudly and excitedly.

"What?" he asked, matching her level of excitement.

"I'm _drunk_!" she said gleefully, making the boys chuckle.

"I can see that," he grinned.

"Want to know something else?" she asked, beaming this time.

"Sure," he said, leaning against the cushion.

"Remus doesn't hate me," she said happily.

Sirius glanced at Remus and then James before smiling at her, "Did that bother you?"

"Yes," she gave an exasperated sigh, sending a few pieces of her hair up in the air, "Far more than I would normally care to admit." She then stared at Sirius for a moment before grinning and pecking him on the right cheek. He shot her a glare before standing up and going back to the bathroom, leaving her and James and Remus into fits of giggles.

* * *

"Morning, Sunshine," James said, smiling at Hermione as she stood on the steps leading to her room and rubbed her eyes, wearing a rather large shirt and shorts, her hair a very big bush. It had taken a lot of coaxing from the three boys to get her to go to sleep, as it seemed she had a lot of energy from the alcohol. Soon enough, though, she'd calmed down and told them goodnight and went into her room. They checked on her multiple times throughout the night and found that she'd changed and made it to her bed without too many incidents, and then crashed in her living room in the case that she would need them.

Hermione winced and gripped a piece of her hair as James and Remus grinned sleepily at her, "Oh, please tell me I didn't do too many stupid things."

"Not that many," James assured her.

Hermione shot a grateful smile to him before yelping at somebody yelling, glaring at a drawer in her kitchen and yanking it out roughly, glaring at a hand mirror.

"Harry James Potter," she growled menacingly, although it was ruined slightly by her wincing. "I am going to hex you."

He grinned cheekily at her, "Want to know what you did at the Gala last night?"

"No," she said grumpily.

"You told Cormac McLaggen that you would absolutely _love_ to go out with him next Tuesday," he said as all color drained from her face.

"What?" she asked shakily as the boys watched her reaction in amusement.

"Hermione, I'm kidding." Harry snorted, "Please, even when drunk, you know better."

"Oh, you're awful!" she declared before wincing at her volume. "Ugh, remind me not to drink ever again."

"Hell no!" Harry announced, "You're a fun drunk!"

"You really are," James chuckled, making her shoot a glare at the other Potter. The roar of the fire announced another person, making her hang up on Harry and set the mirror down, smiling softly at Luna.

"I bring you a hangover potion in a coffee and a gingerbread tea for after that," Luna said, holding out the drink carrier that held the two paper cups with lids, making Hermione beam and take it from her so she could sip her own coffee.

"Luna, if I swung that way, we would most certainly be dating," Hermione sighed as she sipped at her coffee, Remus and Sirius laughing and trying to disguise it as coughing, but failing.

James blinked at the blonde, "You're, err – "

"No, James," Hermione snorted softly, rolling her eyes. "She is straight, as am I."

"Oh," James said awkwardly, blushing a little when Luna patted his arm.

"It's quite alright to ask, James," Luna reassured him before turning to Sirius and smiling a little. "I just love your colors, Sirius."

He stared at her in confusion for a few moments before catching on and glaring, "I hate you _and_ Hermione, I'll have you know."

She shot him a dreamy smile before turning back to Hermione, "School starts in a month. You ready?"

Hermione sighed and frowned up at the ceiling, "_No._ Stupid Ministry and its stupid paperwork. I know what the hell I'm doing, leave me the fuck alone." She scoffed at the boys' surprised looks, "Oh please, I'm sure you've heard worse."

"She is right," Remus admitted, making them grin a little.

* * *

**This is actually my first time writing anybody drunk. It was kind of weird. Anyway – I am so not done for spring break to be over. Also, I auditioned a while ago for a musical, and if I actually got in (let alone got the part I wanted), updates will more than likely be slow. Fair warning. **

**Also, I think I've fallen in love with a new ship, and a crossover one no less. It's highly doubtful that many of you know what this show is, and I have yet to see a single episode of it myself (although I know plenty, thanks to good ol' Tumblr), but it's _Merlin._ And I quite like Merlin and Hermione together. Sadly, not too many short, fluffy oneshots with them that do not cause my heart grief. Oh well. Such is the life of a shipper.**


	13. We Can Begin to Feed'

**Hi! Happy Easter – unless you don't celebrate it, in which case – have a very nice Sunday. **

* * *

She knew exactly how she got up the tree in the Forbidden Forest the middle of the night – she wasn't daft, she could very easily remember. But what she couldn't remember was why Remus Lupin got up the tree with her, as there were many other trees to choose from.

It had started in McGonagall's office – the proper, headmistress office with the portraits – Dumbledore's portrait smiling happily at them as Snape's glowered.

Remus had, at first, not believed that such a potion existed and he thought they were just pulling a joke over on him. Hermione had then produced a small flask and held it out to him, insisting that if it was a joke – "and a downright cruel one at that," she'd stated – then there wouldn't be any harm in taking the potion. Remus had then asked if she'd ever met the other Marauders and if she would just willingly take a potion after someone had insisted that it wasn't a joke, thus making Hermione frown, toss the flask at him, and sigh as she walked out of the office.

Hermione had told James, Sirius and Peter that they couldn't go out to the full moon with Remus, which they had then argued about as Hermione insisted that McGonagall did not know they were all Animagi and they would get in serious trouble if she found out. When they asked who would be there to make sure Remus wouldn't hurt himself, and she'd answered that she would, they'd actually laughed, causing her to glare at them and storm out. She'd glared at them for the remaining week any time they stepped into her office, and practically ignored them when they'd tried to say something to her.

However, Remus had been thoroughly surprised that he had complete control when he was a wolf and spent the first thirty minutes of that control staring at his limbs and then at a smirking Hermione curiously before he let out a happy bark and wagged his tail, acting more like a dog than a wolf. Hermione had laughed and sang "_I told you so_" as Remus snorted and bumped her leg with his hip as he passed, making Hermione sigh and follow him through the Forest as he looked around curiously. He'd never really remembered much when he'd been in the Forbidden Forest and was quite keen to explore, coming back around in a big circle once and finding Hermione sitting at the base of a tree, watching him dully. He'd given out a yip, making her frown a little bit at him before rolling her eyes and standing, brushing off the seat of her pants.

"Moon's nearly done," Hermione told him as Remus sat down and tilted his head at her. She arched an eyebrow back at him as he turned his head over his shoulder, glancing at the patch of trees around them before looking back at her and barking once more. She yawned and heard her jaw pop, wincing and shaking it off, glad that she'd have the rest of the day to sleep and not work on paperwork. Bless McGonagall, she'd thought.

Remus sprang to his feet and backed up towards Hermione, growling low as she blinked at him surprise before getting out her wand and aiming it at the patch of trees he was growling at. She winced when a pair of yellow eyes stared back at her, a lower tone of growling sounding through.

"Shit," Hermione sighed as Remus somehow gave a sigh as well before going back to growling, making Hermione back up against the trunk of the tree. Remus gave a startled yelp when a large grey wolf broke through, Hermione paling as well. Remus looked back towards her, then up at the tree, and then back at her, making her nod and scramble up the limbs. As she was climbing to a high enough distance, she heard another, different yelp and rustling, making her grimace and try not to look down. "Remus? You okay?"

"Shit," somebody gasped, making her give a startled scream as he gripped her wrist and towed her up onto a rather large limb, looking down below them through the sporadic leaves to see a rather mangy looking man peering up at them. "Fenrir Greyback."

"We've met," Hermione said as she gripped the base of the tree limb, leaning her back against the trunk as she looked up above her.

Fenrir grinned up at them, his teeth somewhat yellowed, "'Ello, Pup. Long time, no eat. You look a bit younger – 'course, not as young as when you were bitten. You'd make about a mouthful then."

"You're disgusting," Remus sneered down at him.

"You're frightened," Fenrir replied with a chuckle, "No matter – you have to come down sometime. Or someone will come looking for you – I've got a lot of time on my hands."

"You would too at Azkaban – where you rightfully belong," Hermione glared.

Greyback only grinned wider, "Ahh, the little Mudblood. I still wonder how you'd taste – can't wait to find out."

"Go to hell!" she called out, gritting her teeth as Remus shifted a little on the branch and reached up above him for something.

"Meet you down there with – ow!"

Remus laughed as Greyback glared at him with one eye, pumping his fist, "Direct hit!" At Hermione's questioning glance, he grinned wider, "Threw a pine cone at him."

She snorted and grinned a little at him, "You couldn't think of something better?"

"Well, I haven't got my wand on me – and neither does he, or else we'd probably already be dead," Remus noted before looking at Hermione, "Where's yours?"

She grimaced, "Back pocket." She blanched when he looked at her expectantly, "Remus, I have a confession to make."

"What?" he asked curiously.

"I'm afraid of heights."

He blinked once at her.

"There's no way I'm moving from this position," she said very seriously as he sighed at her and began to move towards her, making her glare and pick up her leg, "And you are not coming any closer if I know what you're thinking."

"Just let me get your wand," he stated.

"Did you not listen to me when I told you where it was? You _aren't_ getting near it!"

"Hermione!"

"Remus!"

"Greyback!" he sang from below, chuckling happily as the two up in the tree huffed at one another.

"Merlin," Remus groaned, looking up at the sky, which had started to turn colors, slowly dripping orange with the blue, "I'm stuck up in a tree with a witch who's afraid of heights. Let's not forget that I'm twenty years into the future and the guy who gave me lycanthropy is standing at the base of the tree, ready to eat me and her both. Great start to the day, wouldn't you agree?"

She glared back at him, "Look, I understand you hate me, but there isn't a – "

"Do you really still think I hate you?" he asked curiously, "I mean, after I told you _why_ I originally did."

"What on _Earth_ are you talking about?" she asked, forgetting the rest of her sentence and looking at him curiously.

"Oh, right, you were drunk, you don't remember," he hummed, "Well, basically, the reason I hated you in the beginning was because I thought you were Pureblood and you didn't have to go through all of this judgment that I did, and you had all the answers while I was confused, and so I was a little bit envious. But then I found out you weren't Pureblood and you _were_ judged and – well, yeah," he finished lamely, "I was a prat and I'm still sorry."

"You should be," she said before sighing and holding out her arm, "Don't let me fall, got it?"

He gripped her wrist and kept her steady as she reached into her back pocket and grabbed her wand, taking her arm back slowly before shooting Remus a grin.

"Apology accepted," she stated before frowning down at Greyback.

* * *

"What took you two so long?" Sirius asked with a yawn, James standing from his chair and blinking at his friends in surprise. They were covered in cuts and dirt, and their clothes were torn, but they were smiling tiredly at them.

"Fenrir Greyback," Hermione yawned as she flopped down into James' vacated chair and curled up in it, closing her eyes.

"Greyback?" James asked as Sirius finally started to wake up, looking at his friend with wide eyes as he flopped onto the couch and nudged Peter awake with his foot, "_That_ Greyback?"

"_That_ Greyback," he answered with a sigh before grinning over at Hermione, "Who is now currently on his way to receive the Dementor's Kiss thanks to the lovely Hermione Granger."

She threw a pillow at his head, making him laugh a little as she tried not to blush, "I'm not lovely. Shut up and go to sleep."

"She was awesome, Prongs," Remus continued.

"Remus," she chided.

"I honestly think he was terrified of her, which was awesome because – "

"I hate you!"

"She doesn't look intimidating but she had Fenrir Greyback screaming and running the other way!"

"I'm never going with you on another full moon!" she threatened.

"Oh yeah, how'd the potion work?" Sirius asked.

"Brilliant!" he grinned and sat up, "I'm just stuck in a wolf body! I can have complete control over myself! It's great!"

Hermione groaned and stood, moving to go to the basement, "You people are far too loud! Goodnight and goodbye!" Remus only laughed after her, making her huff before she went through the Floo to crawl into bed.

She smiled up at the ceiling, glad that the truth with Remus had been uncovered and things were starting to get on the right track. She then groaned when she realized she only had a set number of days before the students came to Hogwarts.

"Fuck," she muttered darkly as she rolled over, curled up, and went to sleep.

* * *

**I know that in the movies, the werewolves are actually far more terrifying – however, I like the idea of larger-than-normal wolves. I like wolves in general – I think they're badass. Also – Remus and Greyback both had clothes when they changed back from their wolfy forms. Otherwise that would be awkward.**


	14. Twas Brillig, and the Slithy Toves

All she could do was keep watching her glass. She couldn't tell you which first years got Sorted where and who all had come back to redo their seventh year. She couldn't tell you who was sitting to her left. She couldn't tell you what she'd eaten – or even if she'd eaten at all.

She was absolutely petrified. She was a professor now, she had to have certain duties and she had to _teach_ tomorrow. It had all gone by too quickly, if you asked her, and she felt that she wasn't ready. There was no way she could do this – she'd ask McGonagall if she could resign tomorrow, that would be it, and she'd just be this disappointing puddle of Hermione.

"Psst," somebody hissed, making her blink and look around curiously before finally settling on the door leading to the trophy room, which was slightly ajar with four grinning faces looking back at her.

"Breathe," Peter reminded her.

"You're brilliant," Remus grinned.

"You'll do fine," James assured.

"We love you," Sirius said, making her try to fight a grin and instead wrinkled her nose at them as they grinned wider and shut the door, causing her to finally look at her students and release a breath. She found Ginny waving happily at her, Dean and Seamus sitting by her and grinning back as well. Luna was on the far end of the Ravenclaw table so that she could try to have a conversation with her friends in Gryffindor, Neville stretching across to speak to her, the two glancing up and grinning brightly at her. She glanced over the Hufflepuff table and saw a few familiar faces, including Ernie. She saw movement at the Slytherin table and looked, smiling a little when Blaise Zabini nudged Draco and nodded towards her, the two smiling politely at her as Blaise lifted his cup and raised it towards her, making her grin a little bit wider and nod slightly towards him.

Nah, she could handle this. She was Hermione Granger after all.

* * *

"Can't we stay?" Sirius asked, bouncing a little on his toes, "Please? We'll be really good, Hermione, honestly, and we'll just file something."

Hermione frowned at him, "You couldn't file to save your life."

"I'll learn!" he begged.

"Who's your first class?" James questioned.

"Seventh year, advanced edition," she said before shrugging, "Basically anyone who participated in the War. McGonagall agreed that if they were in it, then she saw no reason as to why they would be forced to do anything more that was beneath them. It'll pretty much be a free hour."

"Let us stay," Sirius whined, sticking his lower lip out in a pout.

She sighed and rolled her eyes before handing him a large stack of papers, "Go file those. And keep your mouth shut." She looked back at the Marauders and saw Remus smirking at her once Sirius happily went off to the filing cabinet. "Yes, I know they were blank. I had to give him _something_."

"So was that offer just for Padfoot or…?" James asked before she laughed and waved him to the staircase to go and 'observe.' He grinned brightly at her before dropping down and pecking her temple, pulling Peter with him as Hermione attempted to swat him away.

"How you put up with them I'll never know," Remus chuckled.

"I didn't, remember?" she questioned, making him grin at her as he headed to the staircase, sitting a few steps beneath James and Peter as the first students strolled in.

"Oy, Professor Granger," the first said, dropping his bag down at a table at the front, strutting up to her. He had sand colored hair cropped short, his eyebrows rather scraggily, and his shirt sleeves rolled up to the elbows, his tie untied and hanging around his neck, a thick Irish accent in his voice. "Ah go' a bone tah pick with yah."

"Oh, _do_ you now, Seamus Finnegan?" she teased.

"In fact, we both do," the second said, appearing on her other side and grinning at her. He had dark skin and rather short dark hair, towering over both her and his friend, hands stuffed in robe pockets as he smiled at her. "We were wondering when you'd pick one."

"Oh, stop it," she flushed as they grinned happily at her.

"We ain' go' fo'ever, 'Ermione," Seamus stated, hopping up on top of her desk and towing her into his lap, making her gasp and struggle to get away as she blushed.

"Yeah," Dean agreed, "So pick one – me or Seamus!"

"Pick me – I'm better lookin'," Seamus grinned as she huffed at him.

"He's a better _liar_," Dean said.

"Should you be having that kind of relationship with your students?" Sirius called over his shoulder, making her huff and pull away from Seamus as he and Dean grinned brightly at her.

"I thought I told you to file and keep your mouth shut?" Hermione said with her hands on her hips.

"I am filing, just forgot the last bit," Sirius replied coolly.

"And you two," Hermione turned on them as Dean hopped up on her desk with Seamus, the two elbowing each other back and forth. "If any of the other teachers hear you teasing like that, it'll be _my_ head."

"And it's such a pretty head," Dean said, batting his eyelashes.

"Ain' teasin' neither!" Seamus crowed, "Pick one, Lass!"

"Go to your seat!" she ordered as they sighed and moved to their table, Ginny rolling her eyes as Luna stepped up to Dean and hugged him around the middle, making him blink for a moment before patting her on top of the head.

"Great, you've peeved her off before class even starts," Ginny sighed before smiling to Hermione, "Merlin, I've missed you. Would it be wrong to hug you, Professor?"

"Better than what Seamus did," she grumbled before squeezing Ginny tightly, "Missed you too."

"You have a wonderful aura today, Hermione," Luna complimented, making her blink for a second before smiling back at her.

"Thank you, Luna," she said before sharing a shrug with Ginny.

"So what're we doing in this class?" Blaise asked, leaning against his arms as he and Draco sat at a table in the back.

"You will be keeping your fighting abilities in check and preparing for the N.E.W.T.s if this is your first time as a seventh year," she recited before snorting, "Honestly, it'll basically be a free hour."

"Kickass," Blaise grinned, kicking his feet up on the table before catching Hermione's glare and slowly setting them back down on the floor.

"Could've told you that would happen," Draco murmured dully frown his arms, as his chin was set on the edge of the table.

"Well why _didn't_ you?" Blaise hissed, making his friend smile a little.

Hermione rolled her eyes before jumping up, wand in hand, when a loud crash was heard, making her blink and realize that her filing cabinet had toppled over and was now squawking out "shit shit abort I REPEAT _ABORT MISSION_" with an arm waving out underneath. James, Remus and Peter blinked before James hopped over the railing and peered down at the waving arm.

"Leave him," Hermione said with a glare, making Remus snort and walk over to stand beside James as Ginny laughed loudly, the others refraining from doing the same.

"Padfoot," James started as he crouched down next to the arm, "What have we learned?"

"Not to climb filing cabinets," he said wheezily.

"And?"

"Not to climb filing cabinets to throw the papers up and scream that it was confetti," he muttered.

"And?" Remus asked, standing next to James and grinning.

"Get me out from underneath here, you wankers," Sirius grumbled as they laughed. Remus easily lifted the cabinet with his wand, setting it back into place as Sirius laid on his back with an arm thrown over his eyes, breathing deeply and cursing the cabinet from there to hell and back.

"I told you to just file and keep your mouth shut!" Hermione glared down at him as he lifted his arm.

"You didn't say anything about climbing the filing cabinet!" he argued.

"I shouldn't have needed to!" she insisted as everyone else freely laughed, James sitting next to his friend and laughing particularly loud, Remus leaning against Hermione desk and trying to stop laughing. She growled and rubbed her eyes, groaning to the ceiling, "This is only my first class, I'm going to get fired by the end of the day, oh my God."

Hermione, as it turned out, did not get fired. She'd successfully made it through all of her classes, at least one of the Marauders sitting in at all times. She'd easily explained things to the first years – which was a large class, due to some problems with the Muggleborn registry during Voldemort's reign – and welcomed the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and other seventh years. She'd explained to the second years that last year was an unfortunate experience, for them and everyone else, and she would try everything in her power to make that year far better than the last.

At the end of the day, she'd flopped against her couch and sighed lengthily, humming when she heard the Floo and opening an eye to smile up at Remus and James, who grinned down at her.

"Hi," she said sleepily as she sat up, allowing them to move and sit on either side of her.

"You did good today, Professor," James complimented, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and hugging her. "We're super proud of you."

"Pfft," she snorted, rolling her eyes, "All I did was talk to them. I'll have to actually teach them something eventually. I'm dreading the night I have to grade them."

"But tonight is not that night!" Remus said as she looked curiously back at him, "Go change, then come back."

"Something tells me you do not mean my pajamas," she said as she slowly stood and moved to go to her room.

"No – well, you could, but it might be frowned upon," James hummed.

When Hermione came back dressed in jeans, a white blouse and dark vest with black boots, they each grabbed a wrist and towed her through the fire, making her cough at the soot and blink at the changed scene.

Many people were crowded into the Three Broomsticks. Harry, Ginny, Ron and George were at one table with Sirius and Peter, Hagrid taking up one side of a booth by himself, several others from the advanced seventh year class grinning brightly at Hermione, McGonagall conversing heatedly with Slughorn as Madame Rosmerta rolled her eyes and shook her head at them. Flitwick and Sprout were chatting with Neville, Luna spinning her way towards them to grab Hermione's hands and bounce a little.

"Surprise!" she said before hugging her, making her blink back before looking up at James and Remus.

"You two?" she questioned.

"Actually, those two," James corrected, pointing to McGonagall and Harry, "Congratulations on surviving your first day as a professor!"

"Oh, before we forget!" Harry said as he and Ron leapt up and ran outside. Hermione shook her head at them as she chuckled as Oliver Wood, Charlie and Neville happily greeted her. She paused whenever Harry and Ron brought in two adults before beaming and rushing towards them.

"Mum, Dad!" she said happily as she was hugged by her mother, her father pecking her hair as Harry and Ron grinned back at the Marauders, who had since then regrouped.

"Oh, Hermione, look at you," her mother said, cupping her face and beaming happily at her, "God, would it kill you to visit?"

"Mum," she groaned as she was hugged again, this time by her father, laughing with him as her mother huffed. "Hi. I've missed you."

"We've missed you too," her father said, "Looks like you've been busy."

She released a sigh and ran a hand through her hair, "You have no idea."

"Oy! We helped set this up! Don't complain about us!" Sirius commanded, making her and the others laugh at him.

That night, she was hugged many times and congratulated. She'd thanked McGonagall and Harry profusely, who shrugged it off, the latter pecking her on the forehead and hugging her again. She'd introduced her parents to her friends and explained the Marauders, leaving them alone for a bit to talk to Hagrid, coming back and finding that her parents were answering the fours' questions as to what had happened between the seventies and then, explaining even more about Muggle things that they probably wouldn't have found out.

At the end of the night, once everyone was gone from the Three Broomsticks and it was just her, the Marauders, Harry, and Madame Rosmerta, the older witch leaned across the counter to murmur to her.

"I congratulate you on dealing with those four," she said with a grin, "Although I don't doubt that by this time next year, you'll have a big crush on one of them."

Hermione blushed and frowned back at her, "What?"

"Nearly all girls do," she sighed, setting her chin in her hand as she leaned against the counter, "You have no idea how many girls trailed those two – " she pointed at James and Sirius " – when they were at Hogwarts. It's bound to happen again, and you're bound to be sucked in as well."

"Rosmerta, do you know me?" she questioned as she stood, motioning to herself with a grin, "For one thing, I am far too busy to go and develop a silly little crush. For another, if I did, I highly doubt anything would happen, as I am plain old Hermione Granger."

Rosmerta snorted dully back at her, "I'll give you busy, but you certainly aren't plain."

"What's plain?" James questioned as he and Sirius stood on either side of Hermione.

"I am," she answered.

Sirius snorted and rolled his eyes, "Right, and I'm blond." He and James then swooped down and pecked her on her temples, making her blush as Rosmerta's eyes widened and she started to grin. "Night, Granger, see you tomorrow!" Sirius said as James waved, walking towards the fire as Remus helped Harry with the dishes.

"Shut up!" Hermione commanded as Rosmerta laughed loudly, attracting Harry and Remus to walk over to them and look curiously at her. She flushed, pecked Harry on the cheek and thanked him again, glared at Rosmerta, and headed towards the fire.

Remus watched her go curiously before shrugging his shoulders and saying goodbye to Harry and Rosmerta, heading to the fire as well.

* * *

**I'm tired and I'm enjoying the animation of _Wreck-It Ralph._ Also – can't remember where I mentioned the musical, but the point is I got in as part of the ensemble – which sucks because it means I was ignored once again, but is awesome because someone gave me a chance and I have an opportunity to make friends.**


	15. Did Gyre and Gimble in the Wabe:

**I'm like so tired that I actually thought about drawing the Chesire Cat from Alice in Wonderland trading heads with a chicken. This was how I realized that I need sleep. But instead – I'm going to drink Dr. Pepper and type this up! Because fuck sleep, that's why. **

* * *

It was a rare quiet moment in the Shrieking Shack. James and Sirius were going over something McGonagall had given them, Remus taking up two cushions on the couch, forcing James to sit at one end of the couch and making Sirius take the chair by him, Peter in the other chair and scribbling something out on a piece of paper. Remus was happily reading, glad that the voices and action had stopped for a moment, before he heard footsteps coming up from the basement and internally winced, as this could only mean that the peace and quiet was over.

"Boys, I need your help with something!" Hermione sang sweetly, smiling prettily at them as they looked warily up at her from their living room, Remus shutting his book and lifting his head to look upside down at her, as she had stopped behind his head when he was leaning against the arm of the couch.

"With what?" James asked slowly.

"Grading," she winced as they groaned, "Please? I've knocked out the first years', and I'm half way through the second years, and I could seriously need the help. Please? Please? We'll have another movie night or something!"

They exchanged glances and sighed, standing and making her beam before pecking James on the cheek, "You're all brilliant!"

"Then why'd you kiss James?" Sirius frowned as his friend rubbed his cheek with his sleeve.

"Oy, you got kissed by me twice in one night!" she teased as she lead them to the fireplace, James, Remus and Peter chuckling as Sirius yelled once again about the lipstick refusing to come off. This all stopped once the boys caught a look of her living room, gaping at the stacks of paper on every available surface. They turned their surprised looks onto her, as she grinned sheepishly and shrugged, "I might have been pushing off their paperwork for my own."

They groaned and flopped onto various available pieces of furniture, grabbing handfuls of the stacks and shooting her pointed looks as they grabbed quills and began to grade.

"You're all brilliant," she repeated, this time placing a peck onto Sirius's head. "I'm going to get more recruits, be right back!"

She then rushed to the fire, grabbing some Floo powder and calling out to the Burrow. She turned around, gave them a grin, and disappeared in the flames, making them sigh and stare around at the papers. After a few moments, during which they had gone back to grading, tapping sounded at her window, making the four look around at one another before Sirius stood and opened the window, letting a scraggily, annoyed-looking owl in to perch on the back of the couch in between Remus and James.

"Who're you from?" Remus asked, taking the letter from him quickly before he got bitten by the sharp beak, shooting the bird a glare as he curled his hands closer to himself. "Dumb bird. You better hope I never see you on a full moon."

"But you actually know what you're doing now, so you might feel a little sick," Sirius grinned, shooing the bird out of the window as Remus turned the envelope over dozens of times with a confused expression on his face.

"There's no sender on it," he said before James sucked in a breath and his eyes widened. "What?" he asked, looking at his friend.

"The letters," James whispered, still staring at the envelope as Sirius, Remus and Peter turned to the letter with a new fascination.

"She'd be mad if we opened it," Peter stated.

"Not if she doesn't know it came in," Sirius explained. It was silent for a few more moments before the Floo roared again, Remus panicking and stuffing the envelope into his jeans pocket, sharing the same look with his friends as they scrambled for papers and quills again.

"Honestly, as if I wouldn't notice," Hermione snorted, George, Harry and a bored looking Bill in tow. They looked up at her with wide eyes and saw that she was grinning, "How McGonagall ever thought you four would be proper teacher's aides, I'll never know. Possibly a lapse in judgment."

"Jesus tap-dancing Christ, Hermione!" Bill exclaimed, finally getting a good look at all of the papers they were to grade, as he'd been examining the pictures on the wall leading from the fireplace to the living room, "I feel so sorry for your students!"

"Hush, this is compiled of over a month!" she argued back.

"I still feel sorry for them," George muttered, grinning when she glared at him, holding his hands up in surrender, "Kidding. Honestly, Hermione, learn to take a joke!"

"And how did it get this bad?" Harry asked, looking at her pointedly as she frowned at him.

"Shut up and grade, Potter," she said, making James lift his head momentarily to answer back that he was, before blinking and slapping a hand over his eyes. She laughed at him as he grinned, Harry smiling as well.

"Forgot," he laughed as Remus continued to share freaked-out glances with Sirius and Peter.

"So, how's it going with Professor Granger?" George asked as he grabbed a stack and a quill, Bill making a face doing the same before pulling George out of a seat and shoving him onto the floor, taking his seat and having him frown at his older brother as the Marauders grinned, a few forcing them.

"Hermione's a pretty decent dictator, if you ask me," James grinned at her as she curled up in a chair and proceeded to ignore them, her hair tied up messily as she quickly ticked off the things that were wrong. "If we had to have one, I would think I'd like to have her."

Harry chuckled as Hermione remained perfectly oblivious to this, "If you set a stack of papers in front of her with a quill, she's dead to the world."

"We know – how do you think we pull off pranks?" Sirius grinned back at him.

Hermione lifted her head and frowned at him, "It takes me at least twenty minutes to become 'dead to the world.' And you _don't_ pull off pranks – McGonagall stops you." She smirked a little at them as they blinked at her, "Ever wonder how she knew where you'd be when you were playing these pranks?"

"Are you joking?" Sirius exclaimed as George, Harry and Bill grinned, "I've gotten ten detentions already!"

Hermione giggled back at him as he huffed at her, pouting childishly.

* * *

"Open-it-open-it-open-it," Sirius commanded once they'd gone through the Floo and into their basement, practically lunging at Remus as he held the envelope out of his reach, frowning at him. James took the envelope out of his hand and carefully ripped it open, sitting down, unfolding the letter and scanning it as Remus tried to calm Sirius down from chanting "read-it-read-it-read-it-read-it." James finally held the paper out for Remus, not looking up from the coffee table as he, Sirius and Peter crowded around to catch a glimpse of the slanted, cramped writing.

_You deserve to rot in hell with the rest of your kind. Your parents should be down there with you. You have tainted blood – you aren't powerful enough to stop us, to stop me. You're just a silly little girl, attempting to gain respect, attempting to gain friends, when you're frightened inside with nowhere to go. You're backed into a corner, crying for help, but nobody is going to help you. Nobody wants to help you. Who would ever care about wee Hermione Granger, Gryffindor Princess, goody-two-shoes, bossy know-it-all swot? Getting rid of you, I'd probably be doing them all a favor. You're worthless, you're pathetic, and I will be ever so glad to rid the world of the endless annoyance you bring._

It seemed as though the room had shrunk and all of the sound and air had been sucked out of it, leaving Remus' brain reeling when he found himself calling out to the green flames, the letter clutched in his hand, unaware that his friends were sitting behind him allowing him to do it, stepping through the fire and frowning as Hermione looked at him in innocent confusion before she zoned in on the letter and all humor and friendliness left her.

He was well aware that there was no actual reason to feel so very protective of her. He knew James and Sirius did too, Peter even frowning when somebody said something bad about her, and it was very hard to explain why they all felt so protective of her, as they'd only known Hermione a few months, and even then they didn't know much about her. Remus had even spent the majority of those months hating her for no reason. Perhaps that's why he wanted to protect her – to make up for it, even though Hermione was bigger than that and wouldn't hold a grudge, he still felt incredibly guilty, and probably always would.

"Where did you get that?" she asked, looking up at him as he stepped closer.

"Why didn't you tell us?" he asked instead, looking down at her.

"Remus John Lupin, where did you get that?" she demanded once again, her voice rising. "That is most definitely mine, and I – "

"Hermione, who's been threatening you?" he asked, his voice far louder than intended.

Her eyes got a very scary spark in them, and her mouth set into a very thin line, and her hair seemed to come alive, "It is absolutely none of your business! It doesn't matter, I can handle it!"

"Hermione, whoever this is, he's talking about _killing_ you!" he yelled desperately, watching as the spark cracked and she bit her lip to try to keep everything in. Remus crumpled up the paper and threw it aside, stepping closer to her and setting his hands on her shoulders, looking down into her eyes as she tried to keep tears from coming out, the big brown eyes shining up at him. "Hermione, please, tell me everything so we can find him and kick his arse."

She took a shuddering breath before clamping her hand over her mouth, tears rolling down her cheeks, making him quickly snap his hands from her shoulders and move around her, bringing her into his chest as he held her, although she wiggled a bit and tried to stop crying before giving up and slumping against him.

"I – I haven't been having nightmares about Bellatrix," she confessed quietly, shakily, as if she were forcing the syllables out one at a time, "Her – her husband, Rodolphus – he hasn't been arrested, and he's been…."

"He's the one writing you these letters, isn't he?" Remus asked quietly, making her nod.

"He blames me for Bellatrix dying and how he was on the losing side and everything," she gave a sniff before snorting a little, and he could practically hear the eye roll, "He's about as demented as his wife, if you can believe such a thing."

"How long have these letters been going on?" Remus questioned.

"About a month after the War," she answered with a sigh, "I went to the Ministry about it, they're trying to track him down, but it's probably of no use. The Ministry is still trying to get its shit together. Although they somehow have time in their busy schedules to organize Galas."

"Hermione, I want to know when any more of these letters come in, alright?" Remus asked, pulling her away a little and looking down at her with a frown. She hesitated for a moment before nodding, wincing after that. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, please don't tell Harry," she grimaced, "He's got enough to worry about." Remus snorted and pulled her into his chest again, this time laughing a little.

"You're such a good person, Hermione," he told her with a grin, "If anybody ever hates you, they're mental."

She pulled her head up from out of his chest and looked at him pointedly with a small smile, making him blink before grinning back, "Exactly." She laughed too, hugging him around the neck and thanking him for being so nice and making her tell the truth. He asked her if she would be alright for the night, or if she wanted to sleep on their couch, to which she declined with the statement that she was a big girl and their couch was dreadfully uncomfortable.

As he was going to the Floo, she grabbed his shoulder and stood on her toes to peck his cheek, smiling at him before thanking him once more and turning around to straighten up the living room. Remus blinked and glanced back at her before shaking his head and going through the Floo to reassure the other Marauders and tell them what he'd been told.

* * *

**Ugh, I'm sorry, but like I said – tired. I'll try to do better on the next chapter.**


	16. All Mimsy Were the Borogoves,

**Hey. So after a shitty birthday party where I met an ex-friend and felt pissed afterwards – towards her, of course, as I can't go to my closest friends' birthdays because of her, I read all the lovely reviews that you have left me and it lightened my mood. **

**Also, now I'm curious – what did you think the letters contained? You kept saying you weren't expecting what I had, but very few said anything about what you were expecting, and even then you didn't give me much detail. Curiouser and curiouser! **

**But thank you all. You're wonderful. I love you all and I'd marry you in a heartbeat. But that is polygamy, and is frowned heavily upon in many parts of the world. Also, I'm sixteen. May or may not be jailbait. (Hint: the answer is yes, I am jailbait.) **

* * *

Hermione glanced dully up from grading, her mouth quirking into a little grin as James looked at her hopefully, a big grin on his face as she arched an eyebrow up at him. He was standing there alone in her office without Remus, Sirius or Peter, and so this could only mean one thing.

"What do you want?" she asked.

He frowned and opened his mouth to retort against that before catching himself and grinning sheepishly, "I asked McGonagall and she said to ask you, as apparently you were 'far better equipped to handle us lot than she was.'"

Hermione sighed and set down her quill, leaning her cheek against her palm as she waited for James to get on with it. She was a month into her lessons and thought she was doing rather well, other than the little blurb on her birthday, as Sirius had set off confetti and loud, noisy things such as small fireworks to go off at random intervals, which only distracted the students and made her groan. She'd rounded on the four of them after her last class, during which the confetti had gotten all in her hair, and pointed her wand menacingly at them, asking which one of them thought it was a bright idea to have confetti go off in her classroom, regardless of whether it was her birthday or not. When Remus, Peter and James curiously – and innocently – asked if it really was her birthday, and when Sirius ducked behind Remus, she guessed on who had done it.

"What is it, James?" she asked.

"Okay, so right now I'm still a teacher's aide – your teacher's aide, I might add, and you're brilliant at your part – anyway, after this month I'm going to be a student, and well – "

"Out with it," she encouraged.

"Please oh please let me try out for Quidditch!" he begged.

Hermione blinked before humming, chewing absentmindedly on the end of her quill before making a face and stopping, looking up at James before grinning, "Alright, I'll tell you what. If you can compile a team of students to go against who I pick as your opponents, I will let you try out for Quidditch."

James brightened and beamed, dashing out of her office with a quick "thanks, Hermione!"

* * *

Hermione smiled at Luna as she sat up in the announcer's box, Dean happily sitting next to her and waiting for them to announce things. Very few people wanted to go out into the cold October air, and opted to stay inside and hear about the score later, while others had made a mad dash for the Quidditch pitch. Remus had sat down next to her, still rather pale, as the full moon was coming up, although he gave her a smile before leaning against the plank behind him, tilting his head up to the sky and sighing.

"I actually hope he doesn't win," Remus admitted to her as she looked at him curiously, "If he does, I've got to deal with another year of Quidditch rambling."

Hermione laughed back at him, making him smile a bit as he shut his eyes, "Wake me up so I can see who you brought."

"Well, wake up then," Hermione said, making him pick his head up and blink as the makeshift teams walked towards the center of the pitch. James had convinced Ginny, Sirius, Seamus, a small Gryffindor girl named Parvati, Blaise Zabini and Draco Malfoy to play on his team, having a tougher time with the Slytherins because he still didn't like them, but Ginny had insisted and he was forced to ask them before Hermione started teaching. They'd agreed, and he was glad to see that they were rather good at their respective positions.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" Ginny's yell was heard, making Hermione snicker as George, Harry, Oliver Wood, Charlie Weasley, Bill Weasley, Ron and another man that Remus didn't know waved happily back at her. She turned to look at Hermione and glared before waving her hands at the opposing team's direction, "Cheating! Totally cheating!"

"You're just sore you're gonna lose, little sister," George chuckled, ruffling up her hair as she glared up at him.

"Who's the last one?" Remus questioned, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he sat up straighter.

"Viktor Krum, he plays Seeker for Bulgaria."

Remus's eyes widened and he turned to her as she smiled sweetly back at him, "You have a professional Quidditch player out there?"

"Two, actually, and the other Weasleys and Harry had many offers as well," she grinned as he blinked.

"You really play to win, don't you?" he asked with a small grin.

She laughed and shrugged, "I had to at least make it challenging for him."

"Is Harry captain? Because if he was it'd be hilarious," Remus grinned back at her as Hooch stepped up to the small circle in the grass.

"No, Oliver is, but I agree – it'd be hilarious," she giggled as Dean's microphone gave an ungodly screech.

"And ladies and gentlemen, we're here today with an exciting turn of events. We have the student team, consisting of James Potter as Chaser, Sirius Black and Seamus Finnegan as Beaters, Ginny Weasley as Chaser, Blaise Zabini and Parvati Patil as Keepers and Draco Malfoy as Seeker – never before have I seen Gryffindors and Slytherins play Quidditch civilly together, but history is constantly being rewritten!" Dean declared happily.

"For our returning team, we have Harry Potter as Seeker, Oliver Wood as Keeper and captain, Ron Weasley as Keeper, George and Charlie Weasley as Beaters, and Bill Weasley and Viktor Krum as Chasers!" Luna said in her dreamy voice, "Hermione, I'm afraid I have to agree with Ginny a bit – it does seem a little like you're cheating."

"TOLD YOU!" Ginny screamed, making Hermione laugh harder.

"Now Ginny," Luna admonished through the microphone, "No yelling – it ruins the vocal chords." Ginny rolled her eyes and shook her head, turning her attention to James and Oliver as they shook hands.

* * *

"I lost," James croaked as Remus and the team winced down at him, "I can't believe how badly I lost."

"Hey, blame your kid – if he hadn't caught the Snitch, we would've won," Draco announced, shooting a glare to Harry as he stepped forward and grinned cheekily back.

"Should've flown faster, Malfoy," he smirked as Hermione sat down next to James, only to have him glare at her.

"You could've just said you didn't want me to play Quidditch," he told her with a huff as he set his chin in his hand, "Saved a lot of time and effort."

She blinked at him before smiling, "My exact words were – 'if you can compile a team of students to go against who I pick as your opponents, I will let you try out for Quidditch.' Nowhere did I say that you had to win."

James picked his head up and blinked at her before beaming and picking her up, making her give a small scream as he hugged her, "You're brilliant! I love you! Thank you!"

"Put me down or I'll ban you from the pitch for good!" Hermione said, making him blink before dropping his arms, thus dropping her as he gave a small scream at what he'd done, having her glare up at him from the dirt as he grimaced. George finally let out a loud laugh, everyone else laughing as well as Blaise helped Hermione up and dusted off her back as she got the seat of her pants, still glaring at James.

"Herminny!" a voice called, making her turn and smile at the Bulgarian player as he set his hands on her shoulders, "This has been fun, and I am glad to have seen you again, but I am afraid that I must go. From one pitch to another, apparently."

"Thank you for coming, Viktor," Hermione smiled up at him, pecking his cheek before he pecked hers and gave everyone else a wave. She turned back around and it seemed that everyone was looking between her and the Marauders.

"That your - ?" Sirius began.

"No," she interrupted.

"Do you want - ?" James started.

"No," she frowned, hands on her hips.

Everyone looked to Remus, who was looking at her incredulously before he quirked a grin, "_Herminny?_" Her face flushed and he grinned wider, chuckling a little as the others laughed as well.

"I'm sorry we had to beat you, but with Oliver as captain, losing is not an option," Harry apologized to James, making him grin as Oliver huffed.

"Losin' shouldn' _be_ an option, regardless of who's captain," Oliver glared at him as he coughed and cleared his throat.

"Right, yeah, 'course," he grinned nervously as the older man rolled his eyes at him, giving him a grin before lightly punching his shoulder.

"It's been fun, Potter…and Potter," he caught himself and blinked for a moment before shaking his head, "Hermione, yah ever need help with 'em…."

She laughed and grinned at him before pecking his cheek, "Thanks again, Oliver."

He flushed and wrinkled his nose at her, "Don' do tha' tah me. Las' time, yah go' lipstick on my face, and I had practice afterwards. Every teammate thought I was shaggin' some bird."

Ginny let out a small cough, trying to disguise her laugh, but failing miserably. He waved and walked off the pitch, Ron sighing and setting his arm on top of Ginny's head, making her glare at him.

"Well, we all bonded with family, and that's always nice," he said before giving out a yelp, as Ginny had pinched his side with a glare, making him frown back at her, "Except when Ginny's involved." He narrowly missed being kicked, running and hiding behind Parvati, who rolled her eyes and shook her head back at him.

"Well, who's the Quidditch captain this year?" James asked, making them all blink at him, except Sirius and Remus, as they were curious too.

Ginny grinned and stepped up to him, "Congratulations, James Potter, you're our new Chaser."

"What?" he asked curiously.

"I'm the Quidditch captain this year," she grinned happily at him, "And I guess we can count that as your try out."

James blinked at her before turning curiously to Hermione, "How do you plan _everything_?"

She smirked back at him, but said nothing.

* * *

**Night. Sleepy. Ugh. Tired. So tired. **


	17. And the Mome Raths Outgrabe

**Wow, you guys had better ideas than I did about the letters. I loved yours, _mekom_, I wish I had thought of it!**

**Anyway, since tomorrow I will be forced to go to school and see the friend who had had the birthday party (and no doubt have to explain why I bailed after like ten minutes of being there) I am going to type this up to cheer myself up now and hopefully get lovely reviews tomorrow.**

**Because tomorrow's gonna _suck_.**

* * *

Hermione stared wide-eyed at the multitude of eyes staring back at her. She'd just rounded a corner, looking down at the small stack of papers she'd graded that morning, and was surprised to see several people looking at her with different expressions on their faces. Also, at what had been done to their hair. Ginny's hair color had gone from orange to a very vibrant purple, Luna's a pale blue that she seemed to rather enjoy, James sporting a pale green as Sirius was suddenly a neon-redhead, Remus grimacing and weaving his fingers through the dark blue strands, Peter frowning at his highlighter-yellow hair.

Hermione glanced between the two groups before sighing, knowing that she would regret it, but ended up asking anyway. "What's going on?"

"Prank war," Remus answered.

She arched an eyebrow at them, "You're outnumbered."

"It was rather impromptu," he continued.

"Ahh," she hummed before looking to Ginny and Luna, "Want help?"

"You're going to prank with us?" Ginny asked happily, lighting up a little as her friend chuckled and nodded.

"But with limitations," she frowned at the Marauders, "Not during my classes or in my classroom, office, or dorms."

"Fair enough," James nodded before counting quickly, "Uhm, we're still outnumbering you."

"You won't for long," Luna hummed lightly, "I suspect we'll get George in on this as well."

"Well, wait, what do we get if we win? And how do we decide if we win?" Sirius questioned.

"The group that pranks the most wins?" Ginny suggested.

"Alright…" Remus hummed before arching an eyebrow, "And the stakes?"

"Extra hard practices for James?" Ginny smirked as she batted her eyelashes at him as he frowned back. "And, let's see…."

"We'll let George decide for the others," Luna announced.

"And if _we_ win, we don't have to grade anymore _and_ we can go on the next Hogsmeade trip," Sirius grinned.

"Alright," Hermione shrugged, failing to mention that they would be going on the next Hogsmeade trip anyway. "And the deadline?"

"Halloween," Remus stated before grinning happily at them, "This actually sounds like fun."

* * *

"I hate this," Remus huffed, leaning against the stone wall as James checked around the corner, "I always forget I hate something and then when I'm doing it I remember. Like Ferris wheels. I always forget I fucking hate Ferris wheels, but I get on anyway, and right at the top I remember – 'wait, shit, I fucking hate Ferris wheels.' I _hate_ pranking my friends, James, and you know it."

"Oh hush," James admonished, "Remember – no grading and Hogsmeade. And Hogsmeade means Honeydukes."

"Ugh, sugar quills are my weakness," Remus said as he hit the back of his head against the wall, sighing loudly. "They'll be brilliant for Binns' class."

"Can't believe the damn ghost is still here," James sighed as well before shaking his head and getting back on task, "Alright, coast is clear."

"Obviously, or else they would've heard us talking," Remus said as he stood, grinning back at James as he glared at him. They edged along the dark hallway, quietly and keeping an eye out for Filch or Mrs. Norris. They quickly made it up the stairs, going two at a time, before slipping into the Gryffindor dorms and glancing at the girls' staircase.

"Alright, now what?" Remus questioned before giving a yelp with James as they were tugged up by their ankles, huffing down at Ginny as she smirked up at them, Hermione sitting in an armchair by the window and rolling her eyes before going back to her papers.

"What is this? Strike ten?" Ginny chuckled as Hermione scribbled something in the margins.

"What are you doing here?" James asked as he held on to his glasses.

"Helping Ginny prepare for the N.E.W.T.s," Hermione answered before handing the papers back to her, "You've improved, but there are a few things to go over, mainly in the creature department. I have to go into the Forest with Hagrid next week; I'll talk to him about going over the creatures during the seventh year classes."

Ginny smiled back at her before wrapping an arm around her shoulders and hugging her, as her other arm was still occupied by holding the boys aloft, "Thanks, Hermione." They then turned their attention back to the boys, blinking when James' glasses fell and he cursed. "What should I do with them?"

Hermione smirked up at them as she shifted her weight onto one leg and crossed her arms. Remus grimaced in response. "I have an idea."

* * *

"So what happened again?" Sirius questioned, as James as still inspecting his glasses thoroughly, even though they'd been repaired last night.

Remus sighed and draped himself across their dining table, pouting a little, "They threw us out into the hallway _right_ when Filch was walking by."

"We've got detention," James deadpanned.

"I don't know why Hermione just didn't give us detention," Remus shrugged.

"For one thing, it's kind of cheating when we're doing the war thing," Sirius pointed out, "For another, she's kind of likes us. Filch kind of hates us."

"Right – oh, he also kept talking about you as he were dragged to his office by our ears," James snorted, "Kept saying that if I was there, Black wasn't far behind."

Sirius chuckled as Peter grinned as well, Remus lifting his head only to put it on his arms.

"So how was the library?" Remus questioned.

"Quiet, dark, and downright creepy," Sirius huffed before grinning, "It misses you though."

"It's nice to know that a large room develops thoughts and feelings just for me," Remus grinned back before glancing at the time. "We have a day until Halloween _and_ the Hogsmeade trip."

"I know Hermione said not in front of her students, but we're tied and need to settle the score," James winced.

"Let me do it, I wanna do it!" Sirius said excitedly, bouncing in his seat.

"Go for it, Padfoot," James grinned before blinking, "Oh, speaking of which – when will we ever be able to go out with you on full moons again? I mean, I know Hermione knows, but even if she does go, why can't we?"

Remus shrugged, "I dunno. I was waiting on you guys. Felt a little heartbroken last time when you didn't show up." He grinned as James threw a napkin at his head, sticking his tongue out back at him as Peter chuckled.

"So, lunch or dinner?" Sirius questioned, getting back on the previous topic as he stood and started piling up the dishes.

"Ehh, dinner," James shrugged, "Nobody will be expecting it if we do it towards the end."

"Sounds good," Sirius grinned back.

* * *

"_In – front – of – my – students_," she growled, wand pointed at the four, as she had somehow backed them all up into a corner, glaring at them as they grimaced – especially Remus, as they'd pushed him the closest to her.

"C'mon, Hermione," James began to plead.

"My students used to respect me! Now all they can see is – is what you turned me into!"

"Well, in our defense, you make a very cute kitten," Sirius tried, only this made her turn her glare purely on him.

"Uhm, Hermione, look," Remus began, moving her wand away from his face carefully, "We understand that you said that and it is one of your rules, but they'll forget it all eventually anyway." She arched an eyebrow and he grimaced a little, "Okay, so, maybe they'll forget it in seven years." He then grinned back at her as she lowered her wand and rolled her eyes, "And yes, you did make a very cute kitten."

She frowned at him before huffing, sending a lock of her hair up into the air, before smirking, "Well, my work here is done." And with that, she turned on her heel and went to walk away, but Remus lurched forward and grabbed her arm and looked at her warily. She grinned before slipping out of his hold, winking before sprinting down the hallway, her smile widening when she heard them chasing after her, laughing a little.

* * *

**I should not be trusted with like any money on iTunes because like all I get is indie music and any Disney songs that I don't already have. Speaking of which – _I just realized I need 'Make a Man Out of You' like right now._**


	18. Beware the Jabberwock, My Son!

**Thanks again, guys. Your reviews made me feel better. Also, my friend Michael is taking dietary supplements for training for a fight, and he basically was pretty high today, and that made me smile, so hooray for the Corgi Wolf! (He was actually described as a corgi today. It was fitting.) **

* * *

Today was certainly not about to be a good day. Yes, last night, they had won the prank war, the Shrieking Shack done in vibrant colors and awful patterns on every surface, leaving Hermione, George and Luna giggling madly as they gaped at it. Hermione had handed them a stack of papers to grade and Ginny had informed James that practice was to begin at eight o'clock sharp the next morning, and George had gleefully informed Sirius, Peter and Remus that they were to be his new test subjects for a month.

So Hermione hadn't really though anything of it when Sirius had handed her gingerbread tea, making her smile up at him, thank him, and take a sip. It was whenever she saw his smirk that she felt rather strange before finding that everything was shrinking. He then began to laugh as Hermione stared up at her larger-than-normal desk and twitched her nose, noticing that she had whiskers.

Sirius had picked her up by the nape of her kitten neck and carried her through the halls, an arm's length away to avoid being bitten or scratched, laughing as he carried her down to the Quidditch pitch, where Ginny, Luna, Remus, Peter and James were – James on his broom and groaning about how he ached.

"Aww, cute kitty!" Luna said, immediately plucking the kitten out of his grip and holding her rather tight, so that Hermione gave a squeak and squirmed.

"Padfoot, no," Remus said, pale and eyes wide as Peter slapped a hand over his eyes, "Tell me it's not – "

"Is that Hermione?" Ginny blinked as Luna gaped at the kitten in her arms. Ginny then whirled around to Sirius and pointed her wand up at him, glaring darkly, "Change her back right now, Sirius Black, or so help me - !"

"Whoa, Red, look – I couldn't change her back even if I wanted to," he stated, "It'll take twenty-four hours for the potion to wear off."

"Poor Hermione," Luna cooed as she hissed at Sirius and swatted a clawed paw at him. "But you are terribly cute."

"See? What did we tell you?" Sirius asked with a grin.

"Oh no," Ginny grimaced as a few students raced by, "The Hogsmeade trip. Hermione was supposed to chaperone."

"I can tell McGonagall," Peter said, standing from the bench and jogging towards the castle a little.

"Well, it's not just that, but Hermione can't really go out on her own until it wears off," Luna frowned, "And we've got to go into Hogsmeade. Your mum's birthday, remember? Not to mention seeing Harry."

"But Hermione's a cat! We can't just leave her," Ginny protested. Hermione waved her closer before head butting her arm, looking up at her and giving a small mew. Ginny arched an eyebrow before smiling a little, "Are you saying it'll be alright if we go?" Hermione nodded and she smiled a little bit wider, swooping down and pecking her on top of her head, "Thank you, Hermione. If they do anything to you, just tell us, and we'll get Oliver, Charlie, Bill and Viktor down here in a flash." Luna then warily deposited Hermione with Remus, who promised to watch out for her, before the two walked up to the castle to get to Hogsmeade.

"Padfoot, I can't believe you," James said as he stepped off of his broom and promptly collapsed into the grass, folding his arms behind his head and shutting his eyes. "You really are a sore loser."

"I can't wait to see what you do when you can get back at him," Remus said, smirked down at Hermione, as he heard her growling as she glared at Sirius.

* * *

The boys had hung out in the living room of Hermione's quarters, Hermione perched on Remus's chest as they watched Disney movies, James and Sirius sticking with the chairs, as neither felt the need to be scratched, leaving Remus the opportunity to stretch out. The first movie was suggested by Sirius and was named _the AristoCats_, which made Hermione growl again and cause Remus to laugh a little, once again proclaiming how excited he was to see what she would do to him once she could. James had nodded before he dozed off in the chair, glasses nearly falling off with his mouth agape.

Hermione, however, was sure that she would probably be blushing, if cats could blush. It was all rather embarrassing, being turned into a small, defenseless kitten, and then plopped onto a chest and petted, and then feeling the need to _purr_ about it – well, she was very sure that she would kill Sirius and then crawl into a hole and die. She felt as if she could do that right then, as Tom O'Malley scrambled onto the back of the milk truck with Duchess and the kittens. She remembered being so scared for the cats during that moment when she was younger, always wondering if they would make it, no matter how many times it was played.

Remus suddenly stopped, his hand frozen on her back, and looked at her curiously before grinning and mouthing out – so as not to wake James or capture Sirius's attention – "_Are you purring?_" Hermione quickly stopped, unaware that she had started, and sunk her claws a little into him, just enough to graze skin and feel uncomfortable. Remus winced, but still grinned, before going back to the movie and – embarrassingly still – back to petting her.

* * *

"Good morning," Sirius sang happily, making Hermione groan and curl up more, burying her face into a pillow and gripping it tighter. "Now, if I thought you were cute as a kitten – "

"Sirius," Remus and James admonished.

"Do I want to know?" Hermione asked with a sigh.

"Well, we highly doubt you want to know, but you probably should," James coughed a little as Remus cleared his throat, "Uhm, as it turns out, the potion does not – err – "

"It doesn't do clothes, Kitten," Sirius explained, making Hermione gasp and open her eyes, glad to see that sheets were thrown over her, but that seemed to be the only fabric covering her.

"Oh God," Hermione blushed, hiding her face with her hands, "Please, please tell me nobody saw – "

"We didn't see anything," Remus announced as Sirius sighed and pouted.

"And it's not for lack of trying, either," he stated before grinning at three glares. "Like you said – sore loser."

"I've never been so embarrassed in all my life," Hermione groaned, wrapping the sheets tighter around her and sitting up, biting her lower lip. "I feel like I could curl up and cry. Or die. Either sounds good."

"Hermione, really, we didn't see anything," James told her, "Remus put you on the couch and Sirius had piled blankets on you because we didn't know for sure whether your clothes would come back or not and – well…they didn't."

"I begrudgingly gave you the blankets," Sirius told her with a sniff.

"Oh please," she snorted, rolling her eyes before snapping at him, "You've turned me into a cat, do you really think I would allow you to see me sans clothes and live longer than three minutes?"

"Probably not," he shrugged as she huffed and blew her hair out of her face.

"Look, as much as I like two out of three of you – get out so I can get dressed," Hermione stated dully, making them grin and nod, James and Remus towing Sirius out and muttering something about hiding him for a month or three until she'd cooled down.

* * *

**What did I write? I dunno. You tell me.**


	19. The Jaws That Bite, the Claws That Catch

**Tired, think-I-might-be-getting-sick, bored and texting-my-friend-Michael-as-he-basically-livestre ams-the-Hunger-Games. Can't wait for Friday. Ugh, wait, yeah I can. I have Math homework. Shit. Friday can wait then. Just give me Thursday night.**

* * *

Hermione was always known as the good girl. According to her peers, she'd attempted to stop Harry and Ron various times during their school years and talk them out of stupid things, such as their first year, third year, and even tried talking them out of the Horcrux hunt. What was unknown was that Hermione had only tried to get them to think rationally about these things before going along and doing them as well. She hadn't even batted an eye when the Horcrux hunt had been suggested. She'd seen it coming.

But what was extremely unknown that Fred and George were actually rather concerned before Harry and Ron became her friends. They'd noticed that she was mainly all alone and without any idea that she would soon practically be adopted into the Weasley family, taught her how to hold her own. Whether this was in verbal fights or pranking, they'd helped her with cursing someone's mother or how to give them whiskers for a day. As she'd continued with her schooling throughout the years, her mind couldn't help but gain little Fred-and-George voices every time she read something that could be used for mischievous purposes. _"I bet that would cause some pretty serious issues throughout the day." "Ooh, that one's neat! It has tons of pus!" "Whoever uses this is devious! Oh, wait, we used it last week._"

Perhaps this was why nobody saw it coming after a week of Sirius turning her into a kitten (and consequently causing her to purr while she was being petted – which she still glared at Remus lengthily for every time he gave her a knowing look when the transformation was brought up). Nobody knew that Hermione Granger, goody-two-shoes, bookworm extraordinaire, had a few spells up her sleeves.

It was marked by James, Remus and Peter laughing hard and leaning against various surfaces as they walked into her first class, which was the advanced seventh year's class. They were looked at curiously as they tried to get a sentence out, but only Hermione smirked and leaned against her desk as she waited for the grand entrance.

Sirius looked rather strange. His hair was longer; he had makeup covering his face, which was structured somewhat similarly but still different, with a bright pink floral dress and heels. He stood by the door and glared at Hermione as the class erupted into the same state the Marauders were in as Hermione grinned wider.

"You turned me into a _girl_?" Sirius gritted out once the laughter had gone down a little.

Hermione smirked wider and batted her eyelashes, "_Moi?_ Now, Sirius, what would innocent little me know about changing someone's gender?"

"You know everything," he spat.

"And don't you forget it," she grinned before turning back to her desk and grabbing some papers, holding them out towards him, "Now be a dear and grade these for me, Sirina." This only made everyone else laugh harder as Sirius glared at her.

* * *

"It's not funny!" Sirius declared as George collapsed onto Hermione's couch, doubling over and laughing to the point that he was nearing tears.

"Oh god, I can't breathe!" he wheezed, laughing as the other Marauders chuckled and Hermione patted his head as he tried to get a grip on himself. "You made him a girl?" he asked weakly, a huge grin on his face before he laughed again once she nodded. "Merlin, I wish Fred could see you!" Hermione's eyes widened and she stared at him as he blinked, shocked at himself as the Marauders fidgeted, even Sirius grimacing a little. "That's like, the first time I've said his name since the funeral." He thought for a moment, "That's like, the first time I've laughed that hard since the Battle."

Hermione bit her lip as he stared thoughtfully at the ceiling, "George, I'm so – "

"Don't say sorry, Granger!" he grinned happily, "Laughs are good! Best medicine and all of that Muggle crap you spew." She frowned a little and his grin turned crooked, "Now don't look at me like that. But thank you – I needed that. Even if it was at Sirina's expense." Sirius's eyes narrowed a little and the corners of James's mouth twitched as Remus bit the inside of his cheek. "Hermione, we run – _I_ run – a joke shop. And I'm not doing it properly if I can't honestly laugh. And I haven't been doing that. I've forgotten that's what I need to be doing. So thank you, my little bookworm-turned-prankster, for reminding me."

Hermione smiled as George pecked her cheek, ruffling up her hair a little. "I miss him too you know."

"Yeah," George sighed, dragging a hand over his face and frowning at the ceiling, "That bastard." Hermione blinked and glanced over at Remus, who blinked back. "I mean, I know I'm not supposed to speak ill of the dead, let alone my twin, but the bastard ditched me and I won't forgive him for it. At least, not for a while."

"I'm glad you're getting better, George," Hermione smiled, this time reaching over and pecking the top of his head as he grinned back.

"Yup! So, what're you doing this Saturday?" he waggled his eyebrows and she groaned.

"First Seamus and Dean, now you!" she huffed before arching an eyebrow back at his patient expression. "So, you want to know what I'm doing this Saturday?" her expression turned sweet and he nodded, trying to fight a smile. "Not you!"

He laughed again, grinning from ear to – err. "Good girl! Gotta keep those boys off of you! You have teacher-duties to attend to! Speaking of which – haven't I distracted you?"

She cursed and rushed to the kitchen counter, back to her lesson plans as George high-fived James with a massive grin.

* * *

"Why do you think you're plain?"

Hermione didn't even glance up from her papers. In fact, she wouldn't even have noticed that James was seated in front of her desk if he hadn't said something. She was too busy grading Suzie McMillan's essay on the five differences between a Kneazle and a cat, which only made her think more about Crookshanks, who was living with her parents, as he couldn't walk through Hogwarts without hissing, as apparently the smell of the Battle still hung around. So far, Suzie was doing well, if for the slight confusion of homophones.

She blinked and looked at James, who had his head resting on his fist and he frowned slightly at her, "Pardon?"

"Well, it's been bugging me," he admitted, fixing his glasses and adjusting his position, leaning towards her a little as he frowned, "You're not plain."

She smiled and rolled her eyes, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, "James, have you seen me?"

"Yes!" he said, standing and waving his arms a little, making Hermione blink at him, "Yes, I have seen you! I've seen you dressed up in a black dress with your hair and makeup done and I've seen you in your pajamas beating the shit out of six different guys without a wand! You're anything _but _plain! And I think if one day you ever flirted back with Seamus or Dean or George, they'd fall down and die!"

"They're only playing," she said with a small blush.

"Of course, but that isn't my point," he insisted before slamming his hands on her desk and frowning down at her, "Hermione, whatever's happened to you, whoever has told you that lie, they're _wrong._"

"James, I'm dull and boring," she stated, "I like reading and writing and watching cartoons. I sing in the shower, I am a pain to get up in the morning. I'm plain and nothing exciting."

"You're a liar!" he accused, making her drop her quill and huff, sitting back in her seat as she frowned at him. "You're brilliant! Hermione, if you wanted, you could date anyone you wanted! You have like all of your guy friends – us included – on your side!"

"I don't want to date anyone," she insisted, frowning up at him, "And I would like my friends to stay my friends. I know they're only playing and teasing, it's how they show affection for me. Harry does it too, and he's dating Ginny – hell, Ginny does it a few times. It means nothing, my personal view of myself aside."

He sat down and tilted his head at her, "I get that. Really, I do, I can see that, I think it might be worse if you ever dated anyone. But I don't understand why you don't have more confidence in yourself. Why you don't – don't find someone who you really like and go for it. Hermione, are you really happy and content with grading papers for the rest of your life?"

She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "Of course not. I do want a husband and children later on in my life, but not right now. James, as I seem to have to remind you, I did practically just get out of a war. This is my first time nearly on my own, without my parents, and I'd like to test my skills before I go running off like nearly every other girl on this continent hunting for a husband." She scrunched her nose and rolled her eyes as she remembered the marital announcements in the Prophet that morning, announcing that Pansy Parkinson was marrying some foreign man with quite a lot of money, and that a girl a year older than her from her Muggle neighborhood was already expecting her second child. "Please, James, I'll admit that I'm not plain if you'll stop badgering me about husbands and – wait a tick." She squinted at him as he suddenly plastered on a small, nervous grin, "Why did we suddenly come to the conversation of dating?"

"No reason," he said quickly before standing and heading towards the door, "Well, I've wasted enough of your time, no need to waste any more, have a nice day, Hermione!"

"Hold it, Potter!" she barked, standing from her seat and watching as he flinched before his shoulders slumped and he turned around. "Spill. Now."

"Well, I was thinking about myself, and then how you're – " He stopped and backtracked, "Alright, that sounded like it was about to take a different direction. I was thinking about Lily and then that came to the idea that you thought you were plain – don't ask me how – and I just thought that was stupid. It made me mad. I'm sorry. I feel like, after all you've been through, you should deserve everything."

"James," she said softly, "I'm fine. Teaching is enough for now. But – tell me about Lily."

He blinked before smiling a little, "She's brilliant. She's smart, and witty, and funny, and she was stubborn." He wrinkled his nose, "After seven years, believe me, she was stubborn." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Can't believe I would've worn her down after all of that."

She smiled before arching an eyebrow, "Why am I getting the feeling you aren't telling me everything?"

He gave something that was half of a grimace and half of a smile, giving half of a turn towards the door again, "Because I'm not."

"James," she said warningly.

"Actually, Hermione, when I figure it out myself, I'll be sure to tell you," he promised.

"Alright," she said after a moment, making him grin and head out the door. She chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip for a moment. She'd had small crushes on a few of her male friends at one time or another, shaking them off after a small amount of time and quickly being just-friends with them again, although it was not as if they'd ever noticed something different about her behavior for a month or two. She'd always been ignored when she was growing up, why did she expect it to be any different then? She took a curl and examined it, frowning a little at the brown color. Plain. Plain brown hair and plain brown eyes, plain face, plain body, plain everything. Plain plain plain.

She snorted and screwed up her eyes, "Suzie MacMillan's paper. Right. Forget me." And with that, she went back to her desk.

* * *

**I'm giving them like another week as her TA's before they become her students. **

**Also, I'm fucking tired.**

**My own fault.**


	20. Beware the Jubjub Bird, and Shun

**Like in every single author's note for a while I've been complaining that I'm tired. So, let's pep this up! I've started reading _the Fellowship of the Ring_, and I've only gotten to the part where Frodo, Pippin and Sam have made it to the guy who has the dogs on the edge of Buckland, and it's some weird name like the Maggot (I think that's what it is) and so far I like it! I've read _the Hobbit_, and I thought that the books would follow more like the movies (of which I have only seen very little, only a few pieces to understand that it's rather serious) and was pleasantly surprised to find that this was not the case!**

**Also, _Imagine Dragons_ is a pretty badass band, from the two songs I've heard so far. And I drew Rapunzel. And I'm probably gonna get Merlin for Christmas. Or at least Colin Morgan. Well, in the case that my friends listen to my pleas. _Please please please please pleeeaaaaase?_ **

* * *

"I forgot how tiring school was," James said with a yawn, making Hermione chuckle at him as he laid down on top of his books, arms crossed for a pillow. The boys had finally been sent to classes, waving goodbye to grading homework and hello to _doing_ homework, with various stages of miffed on the four boys representing this fact. Slughorn had immediately picked up from their seventh year, even sitting James and Sirius far away from each other, as he'd learned in their first year. Flitwick had greeted the four and welcomed them back to his class, he and Remus striking up a conversation after class and causing James and Sirius to drag him out to get to their next class. McGonagall had arched an eyebrow at James and Sirius before giving them a pointed look, and Binns hadn't even acted as if he noticed they were suddenly added. Hagrid happily had them started on Blast-Ended Skrewts, causing a few trips to the Hospital Wing, as the four had never worked with the creatures before. Trelawney made ominous predictions about their futures, making Remus mutter under his breath "She said I'd die before I got out of Hogwarts in third year, and obviously that didn't happen, this is rubbish – why am I taking it with you again?" Hermione had shot them a friendly smile before going on to teaching, as they were, sadly, not with the advanced seventh years as they'd hoped. Professor Sprout reminded Sirius that the plants were _not_ to be taken out of the green houses and given to third years and told that they were hallucinogens.

"It's only been a week," Hermione soothed.

"Fucking long week," Sirius yawned, wincing when he heard his jaw pop. "Poor Pete's too tired to even come up and see you. Honestly, I think I almost am too."

Remus was leaning against the kitchen counter, eyes shut and arms covering his mouth as he looked for the entire world to be asleep. He opened his eyes and saw that Hermione was looking at him curiously and rather worriedly, making him smile and show it with his eyes, as his mouth was still hidden. "Full moon's getting closer. I'm more tired than all of them. They're just babies."

"Are not!" Sirius argued as Hermione chuckled.

"It'll get easier after a few weeks," she promised before grimacing at their disbelieving looks, "Well, Christmas break is coming up."

James grinned and straightened up, stretching a little, "That helps better than the first one."

"D'you lot want to bunk over?" she asked in amusement, making James and Sirius hop towards the couch, making Remus roll his eyes and shake his head at them as they fought over the piece of furniture. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Thanks, Hermione," Remus said as he straightened up, smiling at her before they watched as Sirius claimed the couch as his, spreading out far more than was needed to ensure that James couldn't claim any bit of it. "The Shrieking Shack seems farther away when you're tired, even if it is just a Floo away."

"Hey, no problem," she shrugged, "At least here, I can keep an eye on you three and make sure you don't prank any of my classes."

"Ooh, good idea," James muffled as he buried his face into a pillow and laid on the floor, grinning when she glared at him.

"I was going to give you an air mattress, but never mind then," she frowned before Remus grinned.

"Seriously? I love those things," he told her before she grinned back.

"I know, I do too," she agreed.

"Get one and marry it then," James muttered, upset that he wouldn't be able to try out the fancy Muggle mattress now.

"Or marry each other and do things _on_ the air mattress," Sirius hummed tiredly, opening an eye and grinning at their blushing faces as they glared at him. "Sorry. Blame James."

Hermione frowned before raising her wand, shooting Remus a grin before two large, inflatable mattresses hovered above Sirius and James before they dropped on top of the two, making them squawk and Sirius roll off of the couch and onto James, Remus and Hermione laughing as they freaked. She conjured one for Remus, told the three goodnight, and headed off towards her bedroom.

"You two are nuts," Remus told them, plopping on top of his as Sirius scooted his closer to the fire.

"Hey," he said as he scooted, gripping the sides and pushing off the ground with his toes, "At least I told you to marry her and not Gretchen Ilsbeth."

"You _did_ tell me to marry Gretchen Ilsbeth," Remus said bitterly, recalling the memory from their fourth year, "She wouldn't leave me alone for two years after that."

"Oh yeah," he grinned happily, "But at least if Hermione chases after you, it wouldn't be all that bad."

Remus arched an eyebrow at him and tilted his head as James hissed out, "_Padfoot._"

"Something's telling me you two are on the same page, and in that case, I'd like to be five pages away, at least," Remus said with a sniff before turning on his side, "Goodnight."

"But it's a fun page, Moony!" Sirius proclaimed, making his friend gasp for air as he pounced onto his stomach, making him glare as he grinned brightly, "Prongs and I have been talking about it, and we think – "

"Shut up!" James hissed, casting a worried glance towards Hermione's door.

"It was after he went and told her she wasn't plain, of course, he got the idea after that, but – "

"Sirius!" James glared ounce more.

"I don't want to hear it," Remus announced, raising a leg to kick him away, "Really, Padfoot, don't you _dare_ – "

"Well, Hermione isn't exactly a bad looking bird, and now that you two get along well, I can certainly see you two getting along _too_ well, if you catch my drift," he said with a cheeky grin before Remus's foot met his stomach, making him gag and fall onto his back onto the hardwood floor.

"I told you I didn't want to hear it!" he glared as James shook his head at his friend.

"Congratulations, you're now on the same page as the rest of the class!" Sirius said brightly, popping up easily and hopping over to his mattress.

"I didn't want to be!" he exclaimed before a pillow met the side of his head, the three boys blinking and staring expectantly at Hermione as she frowned and settled her hands on her hips, dressed in a large shirt with her hair flying everywhere.

"Look, I thought it was relatively understood that yelling while someone allows you to spend the night in their living room was a big 'no-no,'" she frowned dully before Remus grinned sheepishly at her.

"Sorry," he said, hugging the pillow and giving his best, convincing smile, "We'll be quiet. Honest."

"Hmm," she hummed, going back into her room and missing Remus chucking the pillow at Sirius, who only laughed silently on the floor.

* * *

**I don't really know what I planned with this chapter. I feel like updating. Also – I have two hundred and thirty-four pages of this story on my computer! Sorry, I like it when stuff like that happens. Like, when I check the time and it's something like that, I'll get really excited and point it out and people will look at me funny like "why the hell did you just say 'two-three-four'?" **


	21. The Frumious Bandersnatch!

**I suddenly remembered what I wanted at the end of last chapter. Whoops. Oh well.**

* * *

James and Remus decided that they had either very good luck, or very bad luck. The very bad luck could be decided by them having gotten caught by Hermione and Ginny during the Prank War, and thus being caught by Filch, and then having to serve detention. The very good luck could be decided by Hagrid giving them the detention, and going into the Forbidden Forest for their detention, and then meeting Hermione during this. The very bad luck could be decided that Hermione appeared to have gone insane.

They'd found her in a small clearing, head bent slightly and eyes closed, hands away from her body and looking as though they were wrapped around something. When they got close enough for their footsteps to be heard, her eyes opened and she blinked before turning to them, grinning brightly.

"Hey," she called out before tilting her head and smiling slightly, "Detention?"

"Yeah," they answered slowly, sharing glances and curious expressions.

"Serves you right," she smirked before she took a few steps and hopped up, making them gape as she seemingly floated as she picked one leg over and sat down with her hands placed in front of her. At their flabbergasted faces, she pursed her lips and thought before it suddenly dawned on her. She gave a sheepish grin and moved her hands so that she began to float towards them. "This is a creature called a thestral. They can only be seen by someone who has witnessed death. I'm not crazy, I promise."

"Oh," they sighed, James running a hand through his hair as Remus stepped closer and looked up at her.

"There are actually about five in this clearing," she informed them before smiling brightly, "Want to ride one?"

"Alright," James said brightly as Remus grimaced and shook his head.

"I'm fine right where I am, thank you," he grinned.

She shrugged, hopping off and grabbing James's arm, instructing him on how to get on the thestral. Remus thought this looked rather comical, but kept his mouth shut, arching an eyebrow as James grinned brightly at him while Hermione chuckled.

"You're on backwards," she stated, making him blanch before he quickly righted himself. "Her neck is here; wrap your arms around it." She watched as he did as he was instructed, smiling as Remus bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. "Oh, and I should tell you."

"What?" James asked.

"Thestrals can fly. Have fun!"

"Wait, _what?_" James asked before he was cut off by his own screams, as the thestral seemed to have taken off, James getting farther and farther away as Remus gaped after him before he turned to Hermione, who was grimacing and waving to something in the clearing.

"I should probably go get him," she hummed as she hopped on another thestral, "Considering I'm his teacher and everything."

"You forgot, didn't you?" Remus grinned.

"Possibly," she said before flashing him a bright smile and going off after James.

"Hah," a booming voice broke through, causing Remus to jump and blink back at Hagrid before grinning. "He deserves it, I bet."

"It's James," Remus snorted, "Of course he does."

"Well," Hagrid hummed lightly, watching as James popped up every now and again with screams for help before he dived once again behind the cover of the trees. "Seems like you don' hate Hermione anymore."

Remus winced and ducked his head, grimacing and feeling guilt wash over him once again, "Yeah. I really wish I hadn't in the first place."

"She's a good girl," Hagrid said before shrugging, "Stubborn, yeah, but she's go' a good sense of humor, and wit. She's no' dull."

"Hagrid," Remus said slowly, and rather suspiciously, frowning at him a little, "Where are you going with this?"

"Well, I'm jus' sayin'," he shrugged again, "It's best tah be warned 'fore yah plunge in head firs'."

"Have you been talking to Sirius?" he asked loudly, getting his answer when he chuckled a little. "I'm going to murder him! There's absolutely nothing between Hermione and I."

"Don' mean there won' be," Hagrid sniffed before waving his hand at James, as Hermione was holding on to his shirt collar and laughing extremely hard, "When James touches ground, yer done. Tell Hermione I said thanks – and tah keep you lot out of any mo' trouble."

"Alright," Remus mumbled, watching Hermione and James' progress for a few moments before checking back behind him and seeing that Fang was sitting there, head tilted at him, and that Hagrid was already gone. "You don't think…?" he began to the dog, before snorting at himself and shaking his head, "No, it's stupid."

"Alright, it's funny, aha-ha-ha, now stop laughing," James said grumpily as Hermione leaned against a thestral and continued to laugh, doubled over and with a large grin splitting her face. "Word to the wise – don't get on a thestral."

"Why do you think I stayed?" Remus asked cheekily before James scowled at him. "Hagrid says we're done."

"Oh thank Merlin," he said, heading back towards Hogwarts, "I feel like I need a shower – I can't see them, but they sure do stink."

"Lovely, James," Hermione managed before she giggled when he shot a glare at her. She looked over at Remus before she winked, moving the thestral to another part of a clearing. Remus watched her for a few moments before he realized he was grinning, wiping it off of his face and shaking his head as he moved to leave. "Oy, wait up! I'll walk with you!" Hermione called. She jogged up to his side and shot him a smile, patting Fang on the head and walking with him through the Forest. They were silent for a while, content to walk in each other's company as Hermione absentmindedly thought about her classes, Remus casting curious glances to Hermione every time he thought she wasn't paying attention.

"What's wrong?" she asked suddenly, making him blink and see that she was looking at him dully, eyebrow arched.

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head. She gave a slight hum before he stopped and tilted his head, looking at her questioningly as she looked at him curiously. "You hear that?"

"Yeah, it sounds like…" Hermione's eyes widened and she reached out to grab his arm, "Oh, shit, run!"

* * *

"And you were out late because…?" Sirius questioned, holding on to his mug and staring curiously at Hermione and Remus.

"Centaurs," they answered.

"And leaves and sticks are in your hair because…?"

"We fell," they chorused.

"Hmm," Sirius hummed, sipping his tea quietly as he appraised their tattered appearances. "Hermione, you can use my shower, just transfigure whatever clean clothes you find lying in my room."

"Thank you," she sighed, moving into his room and shutting the door behind her as Sirius set down his tea and crossed his arms over his chest, a small smile quirking up as Remus started to take off his jacket.

"What?" he asked once he saw the small grin, stopped in the process of taking off his jumper.

"So if you and Hermione did something in the woods, would you tell me?" he asked, chuckling when his jumper smacked him in the face.

"You can just shove off," he huffed, walking into his room with a moody pout, "I have never and will never think of her like that."

"Yeah right," he snorted as Remus dug through his closet to find clean clothes, leaning against the door frame with a very wide grin on his face, "I give you a month, two months tops."

He shot him a very nasty look before going back to look through his clothes.

"I only say two because I know you're wonderfully stubborn when it comes to her."

"Sirius," he said in a very dark tone, gripping the closet door and glaring into it, "Get the fuck out of my room."

"I made you cuss!" he said delightfully, "Hermione, Moony said 'fuck!'"

"That's nice, Sirius," she called out, much like a mother would do to her bothersome child, "By the way, you have no clean clothes."

"Oh, my definition of 'clean' is just whatever smells or looks the cleanest," he said to the door.

"It's extremely annoying," Remus sighed loudly, smiling a little when he heard her laugh. He saw Sirius smirking and promptly shut the door in his face with a flick of his wand.

"But Mooonnyyyy," Sirius whined through the door, "I only want the best for yooouuuu!"

"Yeah, well the best for me is to have you keep your nose out of my personal, private business!" he called back.

"That's what you said when you were thirteen and we were trying to figure out what happened to you every month! And you can see how well that works!"

Remus groaned and thunked his head against the wall, glaring at the door for a few more moments, "Go find James and bug him."

"James is my next target!"

"Who the hell are you – Cupid?" he asked curiously.

"Boys, no fighting!" Hermione called.

He heard Sirius sigh loudly, "Yes, Mum."

With a roll of his eyes, Remus grabbed the clean clothes from off of his bed and walked into his bathroom, shutting the door to take a shower. When he walked out after getting dressed, he found Hermione sitting on the couch, hair wet and dripping and wearing a dark burgundy t-shirt, watching a mug of tea on her stomach move as she breathed, hands positioned to catch it the moment it tilted. He arched an eyebrow down at her and asked with amusement, "What're you doing?"

"I have no idea," she said slowly, watching the tea and making a noise of complaint as Remus grabbed the mug and took a sip, grinning as she glared. "I hope you catch something from my spit. That was gingerbread tea too."

"Yeah, and now I see why you like it," he said before handing it back to her.

"I don't want it now," she said with a huff as she sat up to pour it out, "You've gotten your werewolf germs all over it."

Remus froze and grimaced at her back, making her turn back around to blink at him after she'd poured out the tea before she grimaced too.

"I was joking," she stated with very wide eyes, "Remus, you know I didn't mean it like that."

"Yeah," he said, trying to smile a little, but seeing that she didn't buy it.

"Remus, honestly, I could care less," she insisted, leaning a little against the counter, "Ginny takes my stuff and drinks from it and I say she's gotten 'ginger germs' all over it. Harry takes my stuff and I say he's given me his awkwardness around women. I only joked about it because I thought you were alright with it, like you were okay with it being a joking matter, but I – "

"Hermione," he stopped her little rant with a small grin, "James, Sirius and Peter have joked about it plenty of times, I am certainly alright with it being the topic of a joke. I just thought you were serious for a minute."

"Oh," she deflated slightly, blinking a little, "Well, I wasn't."

"I know," he nodded with a grin, walking past and ruffling her wet hair with a grin, "That's why you're brilliant." He then made a face and wiped his hand off on her shirt, "Eww, Granger germs!"

"Oy!" she called out with a grin, punching his arm as he laughed.

* * *

**Hi! Sorry it's taken me forever to update – I have rehearsals every week, and then schoolwork, and it just takes up a lot of time. But the last day of school (and the day of my mother's surgery – yipe!) is the 24th, so I should have some time after that.**


	22. He Took His Vorpal Sword in Hand:

**I am dying, drowning, and can't breathe. Freaking sinus infection. I missed out on an important six hour rehearsal, and I have to miss my friends' graduation ceremony because I don't want it to be like "John – " "hack hack cough wheeze oh dear lord help me I can't breathe" " – Taylor…." On another note – I think I might be high on cough syrup. Or it could be lack of sleep. Either or.**

* * *

"Harrryyyyy," Hermione whined into her pillow, pouting when she heard her friend laugh, "I don't want to get uuuup."

"You promised the Marauders you'd take them to Hogsmeade," he reminded with a grin, "_And_ you promised _me_ that we'd get to hang out. So wake, seize the day, carpe diem!"

"The day can shove off, as well as you!" she sat up with a huff, sighing as her curls clouded her vision. "Thirty minutes, promise." Harry grinned brightly at her before hopping off of her bed and whistling as he walked out, shutting the door behind him as Hermione sighed once more.

"She says thirty minutes," Harry said, plopping into a chair and poking his wand at it, grimacing when it made scorch marks and quickly repairing the chair.

"Her hair that bad?" James asked in amusement.

"Oh yeah," Harry grinned, holding his hands out to show how wild and curly it was, before yelping and clutching his head as Hermione glared down at him. "Oh, Hermione, when did you get here?"

"I left my shoes in here somewhere last night," she hummed, frowning down at him before catching the ones Sirius tossed to her. "You may be the Chosen One, Harry James Potter, but I can most certainly kick your ass." And with that, Hermione walked back into her room, the four boys grinning at Harry as he sunk lower into his chair.

"Yeah, that's why I'm afraid of you," he murmured before perking up again, "So, you lot excited?"

"Eh," Remus sounded from the opposite chair, shrugging a little as James, Sirius and Peter nodded, smiling happily back at Harry.

"Just ignore Moony – he doesn't want anyone to be happy, not even him," Sirius sniffed as Remus glared over at him.

"Would you let it _go_? It's been a week, and that's all you've been bugging me about!" he demanded.

"Well if you would just admit it I wouldn't bug you about it!"

"There's nothing _to_ admit so _let it go!_"

"Boys," Hermione sounded threateningly, making Harry chuckle from his seat, "Don't make me come out there. I've told you time and time again not to yell in my loft. If you want to yell at one another, go home and do it, but you are not yelling in my loft."

"Yes, Mum," Sirius sighed, hitting his head against the couch.

"And Sirius Black, if you compare me to that awful woman again, I will make your life a living hell," she said, making him blanch as Harry and James laughed loudly, Remus chuckling as Peter slapped his hand over his mouth and tried to look very innocent, as Sirius was glaring at the whole lot. The door opened and she smiled, finished with braiding her hair and dressed in a forest green jumper, jeans, and trainers, reaching for her tan coat and a violet scarf. "Alright, twenty minutes, not bad!"

"Hogsmeade!" James and Sirius said excitedly, jumping up from their seats as Remus grimaced back at them.

"We've been before, you know," he stated as they grabbed his arms and towed him quickly out of the chair, Peter smiling in amusement back to Harry and Hermione. "Really, it's not like we're third years."

"Ooh, let's do what we did third year!" Sirius said excitedly.

"Yeah!" James agreed happily.

"No you're not!" Remus yelled before he was towed onto Sirius's back, squawking and trying to kick him, but his legs being held by James as Hermione and Harry laughed.

"They picked you up in third year?" Hermione asked as she giggled.

Remus sighed and slumped his head over Sirius's shoulder, admitting defeat and allowing the two to carry him as they had in third year, looking upside down at Hermione as she looked at him in amusement, "I was rather small as a third year. I hit my growth spurt in fourth."

"Pfft, you call that a growth spurt?" James asked, quickly dodging Remus's foot as it had aimed for his head. He glared back as Hermione and Harry laughed again, Harry towing on his coat and gloves.

"Oy, I'd be careful," Peter announced, "You didn't hit yours until fifth, James."

"Oy! Whose side're you on?" he crowed.

"Boys," Hermione grinned.

"We know, we know, no yelling," James sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Ahh, no," she smiled, waving a hand to the door, "Hogsmeade?"

"Hogsmeade!" they brightened once again and walking out the door, Remus asking to be put down before anyone else saw them. Harry chuckled and followed, Hermione sighing and shutting the door behind her before catching up with Harry and the others, watching in amusement as Remus continued to try to escape from their grips, but to no avail.

* * *

"So I'm coming in for a landing, I'm looking around, there's everyone cheering and all of a sudden they just _stop_ and look like they've seen ruddy Voldemort himself, and so then I look down and ask myself 'now why am I playing Quidditch naked, while it's snowing, with my owl, three dementors, and my great-great aunt Clarisse?'" Sirius said, grinning as the others laughed, "And _that_, dear children, is why you don't drink copious amounts of alcohol! But, Hermione already knows that, don't you, Darling?"

Hermione flushed and tried to frown at him, but instead grinned at him and threw a napkin in his direction, although it barely made it across the table. So far, the trip to Hogsmeade had been uneventful, stopping by Honeyduke's quickly before heading to the Three Broomsticks, where Sirius and James tried to flirt with Madame Rosmerta uselessly before going back to the group with the drinks, sitting in the corner and telling stories. "Really, Sirius, the pet names have to stop – I'm your teacher."

"So?" they all asked, Harry included, making her wrinkle her nose back at him as he laughed at her.

"We call Professor McGonagall 'Minnie' all the time," James shrugged.

"Ahh, no, that's Teddy's nickname for Hermione," Harry said, taking some of the foam out of his butterbeer and wiping it off on Hermione's nose, making her frown slightly at him before grabbing her napkin and wiping it off, checking a spoon to make sure she got it all.

"How is Teddy?" Remus asked curiously.

"He's great, George has taught him a few choice words already," Harry grinned, "Andromeda isn't as thrilled as he was though."

"He taught my baby to _cuss?_" Hermione asked with a horrified look on her face as they laughed.

"Hermione, I think if anybody had a right to call Teddy their baby, it would be Lupin," Harry reminded.

Hermione looked to Remus dully as he watched her in amusement, "Yeah, no, he's mine, you can't have him." This only made him chuckle, to which she pouted back at, making James and Sirius grin and Peter smile as Harry rolled his eyes. "Remus, can I just have Teddy before you let anyone accidentally corrupt him? I'll feed him and everything."

"It seems like George already has," he grinned back as she wrinkled her nose once again.

"George will be taken care of," she said with a frown, "That boy is far too cute and innocent to know how to _cuss._"

"Uhh, you forget that he's the son of a Marauder," Sirius reminded her, "I bet Harry knows how to cuss."

"Fuck yeah I do!" he grinned, laughing when Hermione punched his arm.

"There's a lady present – watch your mouth," she said with a small smile.

"There's a lady? Why didn't you tell me, Hermione?" he asked before he laughed as she punched him multiple times. "Hey, at least I didn't take four years!"

"Yeah," she snorted, stopping in her assault, but holding her fists up anyway, "_Oh, gee, Hermione, you're a girl! Like, suddenly, magically, overnight, you're a girl!_ Sometimes I can't believe we're friends."

"Yeah, Ron wasn't the brightest," Harry chuckled, making the Marauders smile a little.

"It's alright, Kitten – we know you're a girl," Sirius said, grinning once she scowled at the nickname.

"So where are we headed off to next?" Peter asked curiously.

"Quidditch shop," James and Sirius said, Harry nodding in agreement as Hermione wrinkled her nose and Remus groaned, tilting his head back to the ceiling.

"Fine," Sirius said as he stood, taking his coat off of the back of his chair to tug it on, "We'll go to the Quidditch shop, you two go do whatever, we'll meet up and have another go at Honeyduke's before we leave."

"Alright," Hermione sighed, sliding out after Harry and grabbing her coat as well, hugging Harry around the neck and pecking his cheek once they got close to the door, "Now, Harry, be sure to stay out of trouble."

"Yeah, I'll try," he grinned back, rolling his eyes before pecking the top of her head, "Stay safe!" The group parted, Remus and Hermione waving to James, Sirius, Harry and Peter before they turned to one another.

"Where do you feel like going?" Hermione asked.

"Uhm…book shop?" he asked, pointing down the little cobblestone path, making her grin and hook her arm through his, smiling up at him.

"I knew you were my favorite Marauder for a reason," she hummed, making him chuckle and walk with her.

They stayed inside for what felt like a few hours, reading a few sections of the books and getting opinions from the other on different works, or giving a summary of a book they'd read before. Even when Remus hadn't liked Hermione, he'd liked how bookish she was, as her office seemed to be a missing portion of the Hogwarts library, books taking up every available shelf, a few favorites on the corner of her desk, a picture of her and her friends sitting on top to wave at her as she worked. Even now, he liked how she spoke about the books she'd read and liked, noticing how her eyes lit up and she started to talk a little faster, using her hands to talk. She seemed so happy and full of life – it was rather amazing to find someone else who didn't look at a book and think 'blegh, work.'

After a while, they wandered outside, staring out at the Shrieking Shack and breathing slowly to watch their breath against the cold, frigid air. They leaned against the fence and talked, Hermione recounting the memory of when Harry had been under the Invisibility Cloak and messed with Malfoy and his goons. Remus looked at her curiously, as he was under the impression that they were usually on good terms.

"Malfoy was a foul git to us during school," she explained before looking at a root sticking up out of the ground, "After the War, he changed. He's still a git, but now it takes a lot of effort." She stared at the root for another minute or two before looking up again and smiling, shrugging a little. "Want to go pry the others from the Quidditch shop window?"

He smiled and nodded, standing with her and making their way back to the road before a voice called out and stopped them.

"Oy, Mudblood!"

Hermione and Remus looked around and Hermione immediately grimaced, gripping Remus's arm and urging him to walk on.

"Hey! I'm talkin' to you!"

Remus stopped again and turned back, a frown settled on his face as Hermione tugged at his arm again. "Is that the guy?"

"No, but I'd rather not get into trouble, especially not after I told Harry not to," she pursed her lips before shaking her head once more, "C'mon, Remus, he isn't worth it."

Remus nodded slowly, allowing her to pull him away again, before a large clump of mud sailed and splattered them both in the shoulders.

"C'mon, Mudblood! Stop protecting your mongrel friend and fight me!"

Hermione finally bristled and turned around, wand already out as she walked towards him, "You can call me a Mudblood all you like, but don't you _dare_ call him that! You know, I don't know why people think being a Pureblood is so fine and dandy, especially since they have a reputation for being inbred and so keen to stereotypes! I'll have you know that Remus is far brighter than any Pureblood you could think of, and that nobody deserves to be threatened or terrorized for things they can't change about themselves! And another thing, I – "

"Hermione." Hermione looked up and blinked at Harry, as he was holding her hand and looking at her earnestly. "Come on. Let's go home." She sighed and let him lead her away, cleaning off her and Remus's coats as she passed him.

Remus made sure she was calmed down and not looking back before he pointed his wand over his shoulder and hexed the awful man. "Prick," he sighed as he followed them, hands in his pockets as he caught up, looking at Hermione's pouting face and smiling a little before he bumped her hip with his. "Hey."

She looked up at him questioningly, head still bent as Harry continued to hold her hand.

"Thank you," he smiled.

She sighed loudly, a small smile on her face as she slipped her hand out of Harry's and hooked her arm through Remus's, head on his shoulder as she smiled up at him, "I told you before, you're my favorite Marauder."

* * *

_Someone's nose was gliding along his neck, up until his jaw, where they finally began to peck lightly. He smiled, turning his head more towards the source, eyes slightly closed as he hummed. Fingers lightly messed up his hair, and there was a weight in his lap, someone sitting there and leaning into him, as one of his hands was on her – and this was definitely female – back, and the other was tugging her in closer with her knee. He had absolutely no idea where this was taking place, but he couldn't find it in him to care._

_Remus kissed lightly, moving down her jaw before he felt her chuckle and smile, moving her forehead against his cheek. "Remus," she said fondly, kissing him once again as he smiled once more. The voice sounded familiar, now why couldn't he place it? Perhaps it was one of those dreams. _

_He kissed her neck, humming before he broke away to murmur, "Hermione."_

Remus sat up with a gasp, eyes wide and mouth open as if he were going to scream, looking around his room to make sure that there was no one else in there. It was dark, probably the middle of the night, and here he was, sitting in his bed, clutching the sheets, pale and sweating and looking as if he'd just had a horrible nightmare, which he might as well have. He calmed down a little, thinking back, before he groaned and shoved his palms into his eyes, flopping back and hitting his head on the headboard, making him curse and sit up again, rubbing the back of his head.

He sighed and glared up at the ceiling, "Fuck my life."

* * *

******He's not a perv. Or he could be a perv. To be or not to be pervy, that is the question. I'll let you answer it yourselves. But woo-hoo, progression!**


	23. Long Time the Manxome Foe He Sought -

**My mom had surgery yesterday but she's feeling loads better than she did before her surgery so yay for Momma!**

* * *

"So the Kneazle can mate with a common housecat, creating a smarter hybrid. Many different creatures can mate with other, far normal creatures, and produce different outcomes. The Kneazle-cat hybrid is very docile and – ohh, stop looking at me like I'm rattling off the digits of pi!" Hermione stopped in the middle of her lecture, pouting at the Marauders as they looked at her dully, Ginny seated on the floor in front of the coffee table with her head pressed against the surface, Luna lying underneath it looking up at Hermione with interest.

Ginny snorted and looked up blearily at her friend, "You have pie?"

"Oh, Ginny!" she huffed.

"Sorry, but it's boring as hell," she sighed, setting her cheek against the table.

"I find it incredibly fascinating – oh, Hermione, be sure not to leave out the Blagernauts in your lectures, they mate with caterpillars and produce moths," Luna said, reaching a hand out to tap her leg before using it to prop her chin up once more.

"The third years need to know this, I'm sorry if it's boring, but I can't help it," Hermione frowned before making a noise of surprise, blinking a little, "I put _Remus_ to sleep? How bad is this?"

"Oh, it's not you, Hermione," Peter said as James reached over and poked the arm of their friend, although he continued to ignore him and sleep. "He hasn't been sleeping much, and the full moon is getting closer."

Hermione looked worriedly at Remus before moving and crouching down in front of him, looking up at him as he slept before she softly asked, "Remus?"

Remus slowly opened his eyes before they widened and he quickly leaned back, screaming a little in surprise as Hermione blinked at him. He looked around before slapping a hand over his eyes and groaning, "I am so sorry, Hermione. I didn't mean to – I really was interested in it, honestly."

"You can go ahead and tell the truth, we all already told her it was boring anyway," Sirius prompted, smiling politely when Hermione shot a nasty glare towards him.

"Remus, why haven't you been sleeping? Is something wrong?" Hermione asked worriedly, James looking at him curiously as well.

Remus looked up at her before smiling charmingly, "Nah, everything's fine, don't worry about it. It's just the full moon and homework – I'll be fine once break rolls around."

"Ohh, speaking of which," Ginny brightened, smiling at the four, "Harry asked me to ask you lot if you wanted to spend Christmas with him. It's obscenely crowded at my house, and we're terribly noisy, but we'll all meet up there and have dinner on Christmas day."

"Sure!" Sirius grinned, Peter nodding along as well.

"Hermione?" James questioned, "Is it alright with you?"

She arched an eyebrow down at him before smiling, "Why wouldn't it be?"

"Are you going to be at Harry's?" Luna asked, pulling herself out from under the coffee table and sitting so that she was facing Ginny.

"No, I'm going to grade what I can here, then head over to my parents'," she said before seeing all six of them pout and look at her pleadingly, Sirius and Ginny even making small whining noises, much like a puppy. "But I will stop by and bring presents, and I will be at the dinner at the Burrow." This made everyone smile, dropping the pouts and the puppy eyes, making her laugh at them. "One mention of presents and you all lighten up." She moved to set her notes down on the counter, frowning at the mess she was making before she was lifted off of her feet.

"No, the promise of you being there lightened us up!" Sirius grinned down at her, "And yeah, presents help."

She laughed again, smacking his arm and moving away once he set her down.

Soon after that, she ushered her students back to their housing arrangements, as curfew was getting closer, making them groan and whine and have Ginny and Luna hold on to Hermione's legs in an attempt to stay, although Hermione threatened detention and they reluctantly let go.

Once the four boys got to the Shrieking Shack, however, Sirius tackled Remus into the couch and sat on his back, ignoring his protests and accusations that he was insane as Peter and James watched on in interest.

"Alright, out with it, Moony," Sirius grinned down at him once he'd given a huff and accepted that he was pinned to the couch, "Why haven't you been sleeping?"

"I don't want to talk about it," he grumbled.

"Well, then I'll just have to guess," Sirius said before humming as Remus winced and mouthed out a 'help me' to James, who shook his head and looked curiously to Sirius. "It wouldn't happen to have something to do with our fair Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, now would it?"

"You arse, how d'you know?" he huffed.

"You screamed when she woke you up and looked particularly guilty," he grinned as James shooed him off and Remus sat up with a sigh.

"It's weird," he stated, leaning into the arm of the couch and pouting at himself as James sat down near his legs.

"How?" the three asked as Sirius sat on the arm of the chair Peter was occupying.

"For one thing, she's our friend, for another, she's our _professor,_" he stressed, hitting his head and looking up at the ceiling.

"So?" Sirius asked incredulously as James shrugged.

"Blokes have wet dreams about their teachers all the time," James said dully.

"It wasn't a _wet dream_, and how the hell do you know?" Remus asked.

"We all talked about it," Sirius grinned, "Remember that library aide that Pince had when we were in fourth year?"

"Vaguely," he answered.

"She was all we talked about during detention that year with other blokes," James nodded.

"The ones I always managed to get out of?" Remus smirked a little. "Glad I missed them. But this is _Hermione._ It's too weird."

"Bad weird or 'kinky' weird?" Sirius asked before blinking at Remus's glare and James's condescending look as Peter stifled his chuckles. "What? I'm curious! Hermione might be that kind of bird!"

"Anyway, ignoring Padfoot," James said, "So what kind of dreams are they like? Like 'feels-like-real-life' dreams or 'really-bad-porno-movie' dreams?"

Remus thought for a moment, staring up at the ceiling before answering, "'Like-we're-dating' dreams." He saw James and Sirius exchanging looks before they looked back to him.

"Maybe it's just because she's the most constant female in your life right now," James offered, but he wouldn't look him in the eye.

But Sirius grinned deviously, "Or you want to get in her pants. _Augh!_" He screamed as Peter took his elbow and shoved him off of the arm rest, making Remus smile a little and watch as he lightly cursed their friend from the floor as James nodded to Peter.

"Thank you, Peter," he said before turning back to Remus, "Look, I don't think they're anything to worry about. If they do happen, then just…I don't know…deal with them."

"You're telling me to just move on and deal with it?" Remus asked incredulously, "That is the worst advice you have _ever_ given me."

"Hey, I don't give you that much advice!" James exclaimed.

"Thank Merlin, or else we'd all be in trouble."

"_Augh!"_ the three screamed as Sirius chuckled from the floor, Hermione taking three steps back and looking at them in surprise, gripping one of the boys' jackets in one hand and holding the other one out, as if she would stop them from attacking her with her bare hand. There were a few silent moments before James finally asked, "When did you come in?"

"Two seconds ago," she answered seriously, "I just came to give the jacket back. Don't scream at me again."

"Sorry," Remus stated once they relaxed and Hermione threw the jacket onto the coffee table. "You just scared us."

"Bah, don't worry about it," she waved it off with a smile, "One time, Harry came in my room and jumped on me when I was asleep, and I hexed him. We spent the entire day at Mungo's. So you weren't as bad as me." She grinned when they chuckled or smiled before arching an eyebrow at Remus, "What was the bad advice for?"

Remus grimaced and shared a look with James, although Sirius popped up and grinned brightly at her.

"Remus has been having wet dreams about a bird!" he said before diving for cover behind the couch, as James had grabbed a pillow right when Remus yelled "They aren't _wet dreams!_"

"Mmn, yeah, I'm no help," Hermione said as she pursed her lips.

"Oh you have no idea," Sirius whispered, yelping when Remus grabbed the pillow from James and threw it down at him, making the others blink at him, as apparently he was the only one who'd heard.

"Anyway," Hermione began slowly before shaking her head, "I suppose that is the only advice you can give. Eventually they'll stop. I wouldn't worry about it, though." She leaned down and pecked him on the top of the head, making him tense and grimace a little up at James as he looked sympathetically down at him. "Well, I'm off. See you in class!"

"Bye Hermione," they chorused, waiting to hear the Floo downstairs before Remus let out a strangled choking sound and slipped into the floor to curl up in front of the couch and hit his head against the cushion. Sirius only chuckled as James patted his head and Peter gave encouraging words.

"Is it safe to say that I hate my life?" Remus asked as he frowned at the jacket. "Stupid thing, why didn't you stay there?"

"You shouldn't have left your jacket there, then," Sirius said, smiling at him as he leaned against the back of the couch.

He glared at him before standing and taking his jacket with him, walking to his room and shutting the door with his foot. He sighed and slid down the door, holding his head in his hands and shutting his eyes for a moment before blinking and looking curiously at his jacket. As realization came to him, he growled and hit his head against the door, throwing it into a corner of the room. "Of course, it smells like her now. Bloody brilliant."

* * *

"James Potter, you don't put me down I'll hex you!"

"Geez, learn to lighten up, Hermione," James scoffed, rolling his eyes, but setting her on her feet anyway. "We'll be gone forever! No just popping in whenever we feel like it anymore!"

Hermione smirked up at him. Her friends and students were extremely glad that winter break had come and were happily shoving off their homework until the last day in an attempt to make the most of it. There had been many snowball fights on the grounds, somehow finding that the Marauders were in a majority of them, and often caught herself picking up a handful of snow and lobbing it at one of her friends before she quickly acted innocent, pointing at someone on their own team so that rebellion broke out. Once they found out that it was her, they would turn the battle on to her, making her scream and duck for cover and wave a few of her younger years to help her. Luna and Ginny would often switch to whatever team Hermione was on, stating that they 'did not want to oppose her.'

The Marauders had become increasingly persistent in seeing her the closer break came, often making her stay up late at night to work on things they had distracted her from. But still, no matter how bothersome they became, she would still miss them.

"I'll be at the Burrow, you'll see me then," she insisted, blinking when a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and a chin rested on her shoulder, Sirius pouting at her before she laughed and shoved him away. "Really, it's not like you'll never see me again! If it makes you feel better, you can write to me."

"But it's not the same!" James and Sirius crowed, making Remus sigh and roll his eyes before smiling lightly at his friends.

"Hermione has work to do because we've been distracting her from it," Remus said, "If we'd let her work before, she would've been able to visit during break."

"You may take yourself and your logic elsewhere, sir," Sirius sniffed, moving his arms as if he had a cloak and was swishing it around dramatically.

"Your Lucius is showing, Padfoot," James teased, making him bark a laugh and grin at him, Remus chuckling as well as Peter grinned a little.

"The train's getting ready to leave," Peter noted.

"But-but-but," Sirius whined, holding his arms out and pouting, scooping Hermione into them as she giggled. "I'll miss Hermione!"

"You'll live, Padfoot," she grinned.

"Oh, she called me 'Padfoot!'" he crowed, hugging her tighter, "We're so close now! Can't we keep her, Moony?"

He laughed, "She isn't a cat, Sirius."

"Anymore," he stated, "She used to be one. And a very cute one." He grinned when Hermione blushed and glared at him, "And I was a fabulous female, wasn't I?" She chuckled and he sighed before pecking her cheek, ruffling her hair and releasing her, "You be good, Granger, and don't make me come down here to tear you away from your work."

"Alright, Sirius," she smiled, pecking James's cheek before he pecked hers, "Tell Harry I said 'hi.'"

"Alright," he nodded back, allowing Peter to hug her briefly before he turned to Remus, who was rocking back and forth on his heels with his hands in his pockets, looking up at the ceiling. "Moony."

"Hm?" he hummed, looking at him innocently.

"Stop being rude and hug Hermione goodbye," James frowned sternly, making him grin and roll his eyes, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and hugging her like that for a few moments before he released her and returned his hand back to his pocket.

"Bye," Hermione waved as they turned to start the long walk to the train.

"Bye Hermione!" they chorused, giving final grins – or, in Sirius's case, a final wail – before they went through the door with the other students to walk down to Hogsmeade. She gave farewells to other students and Ginny and Luna and the Gryffindor boys – like Dean and Seamus and Neville – and watched as everyone began to leave, Filch following the 'destructive lot' down to the platform as well.

Hermione winced as she looked around the empty hall that had been full of happy and eager students a moment ago. With a sigh, she turned and started the lonesome walk up to her dorms to get more work done.

* * *

"Hermione! Oh, how I've missed you!" Hermione's mother cried as soon as she stepped through the door with snow covering her hair and shoulders, scooping her up into a hug as Hermione laughed.

"I missed you too, Mum. How's Dad?" she asked as she stepped away, "Or, rather, _where's_ Dad?"

"Oh, dental emergency," she sighed and rolled her eyes before whispering deviously and gleefully, "The 'two teenagers and braces' kind of emergency."

Hermione hissed sympathetically, "Yeah, say no more." She blinked and beamed when something brushed against her leg, scooping Crookshanks up into her arms and laughing when he shoved his face into hers and let out a very long and rather hateful '_rowr_.' "I know, Crookie, I left you for far too long! But you don't like Hogwarts right now, remember?" Crookshanks pulled back and gave her a rather dirty look before snuggling up next to her and purring loudly, glad to have his Hermione back.

"He's always watching out the window, looking for owls," her mother stated with a smile, "He really loves you."

"Oh, he should," Hermione smiled as she followed her mother into the living room, "So, what have you been up to?"

"Decorating," she sighed lengthily, making Hermione chuckle, as she remembered that her mother did not enjoy decorating alone.

"Want some help?" she asked, watching as she lit up and nodded brightly.

"Well, if you want to, I suppose…." Hermione laughed, setting Crookshanks down on top of a plush armchair and moving to help her mother sift through the boxes.

A few hours later, Hermione's father walked in the door, only to have Hermione skid towards him in her socks and wrap her arms tightly around him, grinning up at him as he laughed.

"Alright, where'd the sugar come from?" he asked, making Hermione frown and stick her tongue out lightly at him.

"I blame you two for being dentists," she sniffed as she released him, "If I'd had a bigger exposure to sugar when I was younger, it wouldn't affect me as much now."

"Yeah, and you'd have a lot more cavities, too," her mother hummed as she bit into a sugar cookie, grinning when Hermione sighed loudly.

Hermione spent the rest of the day decorating her childhood home with her parents, helping them with dinner and the dishes and each giving different stories that had happened since September. Hermione showered and changed into pajamas in her bathroom, opening the door and finding an owl looking curiously at Crookshanks as he glared at it for being on the bed. Hermione chuckled and took the letter from it, watching it fly on top of her lamp that resembled a tree and looking at her inquisitively as she crawled up into bed with Crookshanks and ripped open the letter.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I wanted to let you know that the Marauders are all situated at Grimmauld Place (with many a complaint from Sirius, I'll have you know) and that Ginny and Luna have already dropped by and hung out for a bit. The four are very miffed at you for not doing the same, so if you ever feel the need to stop by say sometime tomorrow, it would probably be appreciated. It would also probably be a good idea, as Dad (it's weird calling him James but it's also weird calling him Dad but Sirius gets a kick out of it) said that he'd hate you forever if you didn't visit. And Sirius agreed. So unless you want half of the Marauders (and me – I miss you too) hating you, I'd recommend that you get your butt over here tomorrow. Pronto._

_Also, my new owl doesn't have a name. Since I suck at naming (and apparently so do the Marauders. I got "Flying Thing" from Sirius a minute ago.) please come up with something._

_Love always,_

_Harry_

Hermione grinned and reached over the nightstand to grab a notebook and a pen, quickly scribbling a reply for Harry as Crookshanks watched her, obviously wanting to cuddle with his human and get to sleep.

_Dear Harry,_

_Please reassure the Marauders that I have not found another group of boys that causes mischief and have thus started to cheat on them, nor have I forgotten them. I will be by sometime late tomorrow, as I'll be last-minute-shopping with my parents for a majority of the day. And I know that this is extremely unfair to Remus, as tomorrow is the full moon, but I'll bring by a surprise for him, if I can manage. _

_Try 'Icarus' for your owl. Just be sure to tell it not to fly so close to the sun. _

_Love forever,_

_Hermione_

She sat up and ripped the paper out of the notebook, rolling it up carefully before giving it to the owl, watching as it flew out of the window. She took her wand and flicked it to make it shut, waving it to turn off her lamp as she laid down with Crookshanks, who happily leapt into her arms and purred loudly. She sighed and shut her eyes, thinking about her 'boys' and how it wasn't just limited to Harry and Ron, or even George and the Gryffindor boys anymore. And with that happy thought, she fell asleep.

* * *

**This chapter makes me happy. Although, it could also be school letting out. Yeah, probably that. Woot, summer!**


	24. So Rested He by the Tumtum Tree,

**I'm so glad we have people in my family whose birthdays are spread out _just right_ so that once we start to crave birthday cake again _BAM BIRTHDAY._ (My brother turned eleven on the twenty-fifth. I still have trouble remembering what grade he's in.)**

* * *

Hermione started her day out with letters – receiving one and writing one as well. She got one from Harry in response to her one from the night before, thus making her smile, as it wasn't just from Harry, as it seemed.

_Dear Miss Granger,_

_You are a tardy pants and we hate you. Sincerely, Padfoot._

_You ditched us and we'll never forgive you again. – Prongs_

_I really wouldn't blame you if you didn't want to visit, as it would only encourage them. Also – nice name for Harry's owl. – Moony_

_Harry's getting kind of mad that we're hogging the letter, so bye! – Wormtail_

_Anyway, now that they've had their two cents put in, I'll attempt to cook tonight. Don't be surprised if it smells like burnt food when you come in though. _

_Love,_

_Harry and the Marauders_

She'd laughed and sent another out before getting dressed and dealing with her hair, smiling when Crookshanks hopped up on her bathroom sink to watch her brush through and braid her hair. She put on some makeup before walking downstairs to grab her coat, gloves and scarf and set them by the front door, eating breakfast with her parents and telling them her plan for the evening. They'd smiled and nodded before asking about the Marauders and how they were adjusting. She'd said that so far they seemed to be adjusting just fine, but then again they hadn't been exposed to too many people either, and so that might've helped.

The family had stopped at Muggle shops first, which was nice, as it was warm and the people working were extremely friendly to apparently the only nice family there. When her parents had asked if she wanted to go into Diagon Alley, she'd grimaced and said yes, but that she didn't want them to have to deal with the angry wizard crowds, so her parents went home after the three ate lunch at the Leaky Cauldron, her parents leaving as Hermione smiled to Tom and went to tap the bricks.

Once she was in Diagon Alley, she was practically bombarded with handshakes and grins and thank yous, which made Hermione nod and smile politely, all while biting her tongue and stating that she was only doing what was right, and therefore didn't need any special treatment. She practically ran into George's shop, to which he grinned and leaned against the counter as she panted.

"Having fun?" he asked as she glared.

"No," she huffed, straightening her coat and releasing a breath and smiling back at him, "I need something for the Marauders. Care to help me, Mister Store Owner?"

"Mmn, no," he said dully as she frowned back before he grinned cheekily at her and pointed at the sign on the door, which stated that Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes was 'closed, unless you're Hermione Granger trying to hide from the mobs of fans while simultaneously look for last minute Christmas presents.' "However, your good friend George would like to help you."

"Oh, I'm so glad I caught him then," she grinned as he took her scarf and settled it by the register, waiting for her to discard her coat and hang it up as well. He walked around with her and talked her through what the four boys might've liked, as this was extremely hard for her to come up with, either because she didn't want half of his products in her classroom or because she didn't know what the other half did. It took around two hours, during which they talked and caught up and basically hung out until Hermione tried to pay, which involved an exchange of passing the money back and forth and frowning pointedly at each other while George said 'no' and Hermione said 'yes.' In the end, they compromised, and Hermione only paid half. She made sure to put the other half in his coat pocket before she left though, with a little note that said 'Love, Hermione.'

She dropped off the gifts at her room and changed into a Weasley sweater from about a year ago, grabbing her coat and poking her head downstairs to grin and tell her parents that she would be off and would come home late that night and that she loved them both very much. Once this was done, she made her way to get Remus's 'surprise,' staying for a minute or two before heading through the Floo and grinning at the werewolf lounging on the couch with a pillow held over his own face.

"Uhm…Remus?" she questioned, making him blink and sit up and look at her curiously before grinning, taking another look and grinning wider.

"Hey," he said as he stood, noticing her curious look this time before grinning, "They were getting on my nerves." He turned his attention to the little boy slung on to her hip, complete with blue curls and big amber eyes. "Hey, Teddy, how're you?"

Teddy immediately brightened and held his hands out towards him, "Moony! Up, up!" Hermione grinned wider and stepped closer, allowing Remus to scoop him up into his own arms and smile at the little boy before turning to Hermione and hugging her with one arm once again.

"They're somewhere around here, I'll help you find them," he offered, making her smile and take off her coat before walking through the big house with him. She said hello to Peter, who stated that he was surprised she actually willingly visited them before she was tackled to the ground, giving a small scream as the floor kept getting closer and closer, blinking up at Sirius and James before smiling back.

"Granger!" James crowed, hugging her from the top as Sirius hugged her from the bottom.

"We thought you would never come!" Sirius declared.

"We missed you!" James beamed.

"Oh?" she asked in amusement, "I thought I was a 'tardy pants.'"

"You are, but I forgive you," Sirius announced.

"Well, that's certainly good news," she laughed, smiling when Harry peered down at her with a small grin.

"Well, I can see who the favorite is," he stated while Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Please, it's just because they're around me constantly against their will," Hermione stated, "Once they get out of Hogwarts, I guarantee I won't be the favorite anymore."

"Yeah, right," the five boys chorused, Teddy snorting as well and making Remus and Harry grin over at him.

"How much time you have left, Remus?" Harry asked.

He sighed and glanced at the clock on the wall, "About two hours before I'm a big mangy mutt."

"No, you're not bitter at all," James teased as he stood, helping Hermione up before he ruffled up her hair.

"At least you, Peter and Sirius get the option to change back and forth whenever you want," Hermione stated, "Remus doesn't."

"See? Thank you, finally someone who gets the gist of it," he smiled before blinking when Teddy whined and stretched for Hermione.

"Minnie, Minnie, down, down, down," he said, making Hermione blinked before she frowned.

"Did a two year old just call me _short_?" she asked, making the five laugh as Remus passed Teddy off to Hermione, who sighed and pecked the little boy on the head. "Way to rub it in, Teddy."

"Love you!" he sang, squishing her cheeks together slightly before giving her a sloppy kiss on one, making her smile wider and hug him tighter.

"Ooh, you always know how to get out of trouble with me," she grinned.

"Take notes," Harry whispered to Sirius, making Hermione swat at his arm as he laughed.

* * *

Remus was quite certain that the closer to changing he got, Hermione would take Teddy home. However, it was about two minutes until, and Hermione was lying in the floor with Teddy leaning on her knees, playing with him while simultaneously staying in the conversation the boys were having. Remus's nerves were becoming more and more stressed, and he arched an eyebrow at her and finally said, "Uhh, Hermione?"

"Hmm?" she asked, looking back at him.

"When do you have to take Teddy home?" he questioned.

She shrugged, "Andromeda said any time." She arched an eyebrow at him, "Why? You're not wanting to get rid of him, are you?"

"Well, no," he frowned slightly, "It's just…."

She blinked before sighing, sitting up and settling the little boy into his lap, as he was sitting in the floor with his back against the couch, looking at him dully, "Nobody is worried that you're going to hurt him, Remus. You've taken the potion, and even if you hadn't, I'm sure the wolf wouldn't hurt Teddy, as it would probably see him as your son anyway."

"Your pup," Sirius supplied, hanging upside down on the couch and grinning at Teddy, who giggled at him.

"How can you _know_ though?" he asked.

She sighed and rolled her eyes, "Some people have studied that werewolves won't attack family. Parents, siblings, spouses, and children are all safe, and if anything else tries to harm them, then they will naturally protect them."

"Yeah, Bill Weasley's one, and he forgot once, and Fleur and Victoire never noticed," Harry added with a shrug, "It was during the beginning of his, nobody had time to make the potion and we were all busy with – " He coughed before grinning as Hermione fidgeted, frowning at the rug, "Anyway, he never touched them, just laid in the corner and watched Fleur play with Victoire."

"So even if you didn't take the potion, Teddy would be fine," Hermione supplied, "I probably wouldn't be, but everyone else would."

"What do you mean you wouldn't?" he questioned.

Hermione grinned and nodded her head towards Harry, "Mister 'Follow-In-His-Father's-Footsteps' over there is an animagus too. Said it might come in handy during the camping trip."

"Camping trip?" James echoed with a curious expression on his face.

Hermione winced before continuing, "Anyway, everyone besides me would be fine."

"I dunno," Sirius hummed dully, "I'm pretty sure you could take him."

"As a _wolf?_" she asked incredulously.

"Hermione, in the case that you haven't noticed, you have the potential to be frighteningly scary," James pointed out.

"Besides," Remus started, "I'm pretty sure everyone else would get you out of where I was."

"I dunno, we can be pretty stupid sometimes," Peter hummed, making Hermione snort before grinning back at them as Harry stood and picked Teddy up.

"C'mon, Teddy, let's go Floo your grandmum and see if you can spend the night," Harry said as he placed him up on his shoulders. Once he came back with Andromeda's approval, he was greeted by a wolf, a big black dog, a rat and Hermione lying in his living room floor, James watching on in amusement as Padfoot army crawled his way over to Hermione, Moony watching on dully before snorting and rolling his eyes at him.

"Woof!" Teddy exclaimed in delight, making Moony blink up at him before Harry set him on his feet and let him toddle towards him, catching him with his head before he fell and setting him down gently. Teddy held a pudgy hand out and Moony tapped his nose into his palm, blinking in surprise when Teddy said, "Awoo!"

Hermione cooed at him while tugging on Sirius's ear, making him give a yip and frown at her as she grinned back.

Hours later, James woke up with a start and blinked sleepily down at the floor, where Moony was still a wolf and curled up around Teddy as they both slept, Hermione curled up on the opposite end of the couch as Sirius slept underneath the table, Peter asleep as a rat near the fire, and Harry dozing off in an armchair.

Moony slowly opened his eyes and blinked before yawning, looking around and blinking at Teddy before sighing and sharing a look with James.

"Yeah, she's always right," Harry stated, making them look and blink at him as he shifted and smiled slightly. "We've all gotten used to it at one point or another."

"Of course I'm right," Hermione hummed softly, "If I'm not, who else would be?"

"Certainly not us," Harry grinned as Hermione stood and stretched and checked on Teddy, running her hands through his hair before standing and sighing.

"I think I'll head home, Mum and Dad might be worried," she said before grabbing her coat, shrugging it on and pecking Harry on top of his head.

"What, the rest of us don't get one?" James asked.

"Too much effort," she sighed before smiling, waving to them and heading out through the backdoor. They were silent for a while, up until Harry lightly asked.

"So…you and Hermione…."

Moony's head whirled around to look at Harry before his eyes narrowed on James, where he was twiddling his thumbs and grimacing at the ceiling.

"He must know Occlumens, Moony!" he said after a moment before blanching as Harry chuckled.

"Honestly, it's not that bad," Harry tried before snorting, "At least you recognize that she's female." At their blank looks, he elaborated, "Ron didn't realize Hermione was a girl until our fourth year. Rather sad, actually, because she had a pretty big crush on him."

"Really?" James asked.

"She's over it now, of course, I think she got over it around the time he dated Lavender – something about how she was insane to fancy him and how he was an idiot with low standards." Moony snorted as James chuckled. "In any case, Hermione hasn't really dated anyone. All the papers think we're dating, of course, and we're kind of wondering how they're ignoring Ginny, and there was that one time with Krum they thought was going on." He shook his head, "I'm getting off topic."

"Yeah, please _stop_," Remus said, standing with Teddy in his arms, sitting on the opposite end of the couch and frowning at them both.

"You're male, she's female, it's bound to happen," James shrugged as Remus quietly groaned and slid down the couch, hitting his head against the arm rest.

"Ehh," Harry sounded, making Remus's head snap up so he could frown at him.

"No, just keep your mouth shut," he insisted.

"Hermione's smart, funny, she cares about a lot of people," Harry shrugged, scratching the back of his head, "Maybe it's not just because she's a girl."

"No, I told you to keep your mouth shut," he glared.

"Wait a minute, Harry may have a point," James hummed, "Let's backtrack."

"Let's _not._"

"You really never did show any interest in girls at school, not for all of the years we were there, and then suddenly you start fancying the one girl you've really gotten close to and have many things in common with?" James started to grin as Remus glared more at him.

"Be glad I have the kid," he stated.

"You really do like Hermione!" Harry blinked before grimacing, "Ooh. You picked _the_ hardest person to read to fancy."

Remus sighed and hit his head on the armrest, wishing that it caused enough injury to knock him unconscious.

* * *

**I've been putting off finishing this chapter for a while. Probably because we open in three days and we're crap. That could be it. **


	25. And Stood Awhile in Thought

**We ended the show on the sixteenth. My friend Hannah and I were crying at the end. Before the show, they had all the kids who were aging out and stood them in the middle while we cried over them. I hugged a lot of the younger kids to help them stop crying. A few were full on sobbing. This is always the worst part of shows. The goodbyes. You make bonds, you make friends, you make inside jokes and quirk grins during the showings, you improvise and try not to laugh when others improvise, you help each other when you can, and then you all have to leave, and some of them never come back. And doing this…this show, none of the others have created an impact as "big" as this one has. I came in knowing literally no one, and came out having so many friends and loving so many people. I can't wait until next year to see them again!**

* * *

When Ginny had said the Burrow would be crowded, the Marauders had no idea what 'crowded' really meant. There were redheads in every available space, a blonde here or a brunette there, everyone being an aunt or an uncle or a cousin to someone. Except the Marauders, Luna, and Harry, that is. Hermione was, unfortunately, nowhere to be found, and it was debatable if they would even find her if she did show up. Thankfully, half of the population at the Burrow would leave as soon as dinner was over. Unfortunately, since there were so many people, they ate outside. However, since they had magic, it wasn't as cold as they thought, although the younger ones (and Sirius) did scramble out to have a few snowball fights.

"Where is Hermione?" Mrs. Weasley asked worriedly, looking down the table to Harry and the other boys.

"She said she was coming," Harry noted.

"Maybe something came up," Ginny grimaced, biting the side of her thumb, "It _is_ getting awfully late."

"Perhaps she's getting presents," Luna said airily as James watched her curiously, as he was sitting across the table from her.

"Luna," he said slowly, making her pause for a moment and look up from her plate to blink owlishly at him, "Is that what she's doing?"

Luna was quiet and stared back at him before nearly squeaking, "Could someone pass the peas, please?"

"Luna Lovegood," Ginny began sternly.

She gave a small pout and a sigh, slumping in her seat as a few Weasley relatives thanked Molly for the meal and took off. "She made me swear I wouldn't tell. But there is a gift she's planning to give that she's afraid will upset someone. Or, rather, a whole lot of someones. Peas?"

Ron sighed and handed her the bowl, shaking his head at the blonde as Harry thought with the back of his fork pressed to his mouth.

"Well, what could she possibly give that would upset anyone?" Harry asked after a moment.

Luna bit the inside of her cheek and shifted around her peas.

"C'mon, Luna, you must know something else," James offered, giving her a charming grin and watching as her cheeks puffed out and grew a little bit pink, eyebrows furrowing as she concentrated her attention on her peas.

"I know _nothing_," she declared before shoveling a rather large portion of peas into her mouth, grimacing as Ginny chuckled.

"Just remembered you hate peas?" she asked as the blonde girl nodded slowly.

"Sorry I'm late!" Hermione called, stepping outside from the house, grinning apologetically to everyone before kissing Molly's cheek and giving Arthur a side hug. Luna quickly spat out the peas and wiped her tongue off with her napkin, James watching in amusement as her distaste was evident. "Crookshanks decided to hide a few bows and ribbons."

"What the hell is a Crookshanks?" Sirius asked as a few others laughed.

"Hermione's cat," Harry explained.

"Ugly ginger thing with a squashed in face," George supplied before blinking, "No, sorry, that's Ron." He laughed as his brother whirled around to glare at him, threateningly pointing his spoon at him as Hermione took an empty seat and ate off of Luna's plate, who allowed her to do so after a warning of not eating the peas.

The Weasley clan joked and laughed easily, now that outsiders weren't witnesses. Nearly everyone helped Molly clean, aside from the ones who couldn't fit into the kitchen. Once all of that was done, Teddy toddled over to the tree and plopped down as Victoire – who was younger than him – watched him with interest from her mother's lap.

"Presents?" he questioned.

"Sure, Teddy, we can open presents," George grinned, picking him up and settling him on his hip before leaning down and handing him the one he got him. This caused everyone to gather around and exchange a few gifts early, only the younger ones and people who couldn't wait for their gifts to be opened. Once it was moderately quiet, Luna walked over to the tree, pulled one out from behind it, and offered it to Hermione, who bit her lip and took a deep breath before taking it and walking over to the sofa, where George, Molly and Arthur were talking about his shop.

"Uhm," Hermione began, gathering nearly everyone's attention, "I just…I know how hard this year has been, for all of us, but especially your family, and I don't know whether this will be received well or…not so well. But Luna, she did most of it, and so this is from both of us to the Weasley family and…I should stop babbling and get on with it." She offered the rather large present to George, who was in the middle, and he blinked at her before taking it and ripping it, blinking blankly at the painted backdrop that looked rather like his apartment.

"Uhm…thanks," he said uncertainly.

She took another deep breath and took her wand, pointing it down at the canvas before whispering, "_Ennervate._"

There was a very loud yawn coming from the painting, and George immediately went very pale and Molly immediately had tears in her eyes as Arthur gaped down at it.

"Err…hey Georgie, long time, no hear," Fred said sheepishly grinning up at his twin before he gave a very watery scoff.

"The whole wide world of ear related humor before you, and you go with 'long time, no _hear'_?" he questioned as Molly began to sniffle.

"What can I say? I've gotten rusty," he shrugged with a grin before he turned to Molly, "Hey, Mum, Dad."

"Oh, Freddie," she sobbed, pulling George into her and kissing the top of his head as a few tears slipped out as well. Ginny was curled up in the floor, Harry sitting above her in the chair, running his hands through her hair as she cried. Bill had tears rolling down his face and Charlie was using Teddy to shield the others from seeing his own. Percy's lower lip wobbled and his big eyes got shiny, and Ron immediately resembled the eleven year old he had once been.

Hermione fidgeted, taking a step back right as George handed the portrait off to his mother, squared his shoulders and looked at Hermione before launching himself at her and hugging her tightly. She froze for a moment before realizing this was not an attack and hugged him just as tightly.

"Thank you," he murmured.

"There's another in there. One for the Burrow and one for the shop."

He hugged her tighter, "Thank you _so much_, Hermione."

"I didn't do all the work, George."

"All I did was paint," Luna reminded him as she stood with the Marauders, "She did all of the complex spell work. Thank her again."

"You have no idea how much this means to us, Hermione," he said.

She gave a watery laugh, "You're welcome, George."

Sirius gave a big sniff, making his friends turn over to him and blink curiously at him before Peter cautiously asked, "Sirius, are you…crying?"

His lower lip wobbled and he opened his mouth before shutting it and giving a low pitched whine before blubbering out, "She gave them another Christmas with him!" He then turned and sobbed onto James's shoulder, making James sigh and pat him on the head while Remus and Peter chuckled at their friend.

* * *

Hermione valued sleep. It was a time period that she got to relax, calm down, and earn some rest. That was why she had been so miffed when the ghostly Marauders had intruded upon it – she wasn't a morning person or an early bird like anyone would suspect. In fact, she could quite happily sleep in until noon if there wasn't work to be done. This is what she wanted to do Christmas morning, but her mother wasn't having it.

"Mum," she groaned as her mother gently slid her index finger down her daughter's nose, "Why?"

"Christmas!" she explained happily, grinning at her as she weakly opened her eyes and gave a smile small, "And you have presents!"

"Huh?" Hermione asked, sitting up as her mother climbed into bed with her, Crookshanks immediately climbing into her lap as Hermione waved her wand and the presents from the foot of her bed floated up onto the mattress. She blinked at the amount before smiling as her mother practically beamed. She'd always been worried when Hermione had trouble making friends when she was younger. Seeing her happy, safe, and cared about made her ecstatic.

"I'll help you open them," she offered, making her laugh and nod, her father walking in after a few moments and sitting in the rocking chair by the window, watching in amusement as his wife and daughter opened presents, both still in their pajamas.

"This one is from Harry," her mother stated, holding out what appeared to be a journal, although when Hermione opened it up she blinked when she saw no lines on the pages. She flipped back to the cover and grinned when she saw her friend's messy handwriting.

_For the secret artist I know you are. Happy Christmas! – Harry_

Harry and Luna were practically the only people who knew she could draw. It was just a hobby, something she liked to do when she had a moment. Harry thought she was very good at it, but then again the boy only drew stick figures.

George had given her several new products from his store and the half of the money she'd hidden in his coat pocket with a note that said 'nice try, Granger.' Ginny, Bill and Charlie had gotten her a wizard camera, and Luna had gotten her some type of paint that was more like a cream and could be spread on with the fingers. Ron had gotten her a Chudley Cannons poster that looked suspiciously like the one in his bedroom. Percy had gotten her a book about teaching imbeciles, and she thought it was quite funny when he had drawn a quick picture of Ron and wrote "example A" on the cover. Fleur had gotten her things to go in her hair, and she idly wondered if she knew of a way for them to be _seen_ in her hair before she saw a jar of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion with a smiley-faced sticker on it.

She hadn't been expecting anything from the Marauders, but she had gotten them something anyway, just to be nice and let them know that she cared. But she was surprised when she got a bag of candy from Peter (she was incredibly thankful that her parents were distracted at that point), a book on mythology, superstitions and the like from James, a small pendant of a dog from Sirius (she almost laughed), and a new set of neat looking quills from Remus. There was a small card and she blinked when she found it was blank before she sighed, rolled her eyes, smiled and whispered, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Ink flooded the card almost at once and she grinned as the different scripts filled the space.

_Happy Christmas, Kitten! We love you lots! Love, Padfoot_

_Have fun, cause mischief, and stay safe! Love, Prongs_

_Harry told me after I bought you the candy that your parents are dentists. Tell them it came from Sirius. Love, Wormtail._

_Thanks for everything, Hermione. Happy Christmas! Love, Moony_

"Hermione, darling, you have an absolutely silly smile on your face," her mother pointed out.

"I know," she grinned back, "I don't care."

* * *

**She got more stuff from Dean and Seamus and Neville and even Draco and Blaise but I'm too lazy to figure out what they could've gotten her so yeah.**


	26. And, As In Uffish Thought He Stood,

**God I want to get to the fluffy stage of their relationship so bad so I can write them kissing and calling each other cute names and crap is that too much to ask for baah stupid character development/plot. **

* * *

Remus sat up and released a breath, cradling his head in his hands, rubbing his temples and groaning. It'd gotten better, while he'd been on holiday, probably because he didn't have a regular exposure to her, but then school started right back up and the dreams had started up again. It wasn't as if they'd gotten worse, it was still just pecks and rather innocent things, but it made having class with her extremely embarrassing. He'd gone from having one once a month to at least once a week, if not more frequently. Hermione was beginning to wonder why he was acting strangely around her, but so far had not questioned him about it.

It wasn't as if he could help it. Obviously, he did not choose to have these dreams about her, and would stop it if he could. But he couldn't. He could've tried a Dreamless Sleep Potion, but with his luck he'd probably oversleep and miss a class or something. Even Luna knew something was up, and it was a blessing that it was only Luna and Harry who knew. If it were any of the Weasleys, he'd either be dead or Hermione would know. The first option seemed much more favorable.

It wasn't as if there were anything wrong with Hermione. She was brilliant and smart and funny and absolutely gorgeous. But she was his _professor_, and he knew that there were protocol and rules to follow. And as soon as he was out of Hogwarts, they'd probably grow distant. She would have work to do and the Marauders would have marauding to do. They'd probably see each other once a month and write as often as possible, but it wouldn't be the same.

With a sigh, Remus flopped back into his mattress and frowned up at his ceiling until light began to slowly pool into his room. He waited until it seemed to be the right time to get up, and started getting dressed before going out into the kitchen, where James and Sirius already were.

"Morning," Remus greeted.

"Technically, it's still evening, seeing as I have not slept because James has kept me up all night," Sirius grumbled as James grimaced and shook his head at him.

"Why?" he asked.

"Same problem as you," Sirius hummed.

Remus's eyes widened and he blinked at them, his mouth popping open, getting ready to voice the question, before Sirius corrected himself.

"Although it's with Luna," he said before rubbing his eyes, "Like I said, still evening."

"You like Luna?" Remus asked, blinking at James as he grimaced and ran his hands through his hair.

"Yeah," he murmured.

"You like Luna?" another voice announced, coming up from the basement, blinking at them and making James and Remus pale a little. Hermione had on a tank top and pajama pants, much like she'd worn on their eventful movie night months ago, although she didn't have on a jacket to hide the scars practically covering her. Her hair was tied up, showing that the pale scars covered her arms, shoulders, collarbone, even a few up her neck and along her jaw.

"Nope," James lied with extremely wide eyes, resembling his Animagus form caught in a pair of headlights.

"But Remus just said – "

"By the way, how much of that did you hear?" Sirius questioned.

"Uhh – 'same problem as you.'" She arched an eyebrow at Remus, "Who do you like?"

"Not important, James likes Luna, let's branch out on that," he said, wincing apologetically to James as he glared slightly at him.

"Actually, Hermione might be more help than I am," Sirius said dully, "For one, she's a girl, for another, she's one of Luna's friends."

"Well, Luna's extremely hard to read," Hermione said after a small pause, "But it does seem as if she's rather fond of you. Why don't you ask her out?"

"Because I'm from the past and Harry and Lily and – "

"Ahh," Hermione blinked, "You're worried about Harry." She gave a snort and a grin, "Please, the worst Harry could do is be slightly upset or freaked out, but he'll get over it, because he's glad that you're here and he's glad that you're happy. James, you're permanently stuck here. Don't make yourself unhappy. Actually, that goes for all four of you. Now," she turned to Remus and arched her eyebrows, "Do we need to talk? Is this why you've been acting funny in my class?"

"Uhm, no and yes," he grinned charmingly at her, praying to Merlin that she wouldn't find out, "Why don't you show your scars more often?"

She countered that by putting her hands on her hips and arching only one eyebrow, "Why don't you?"

He hummed and twirled around his wand, "I show mine, you show yours?"

Sirius snorted from behind his arms, eyes shut as if he were trying to sleep, but his grin could still slightly be seen. Remus elbowed him in the stomach to make him cough and glare at him.

"Fine," Hermione sighed.

"Hermione, I have a quick question," James blinked down at her, "Why are you here at four in the morning?"

"Oh, I was going to leave a note and ask if you four wanted to come to breakfast with Harry and George and I this morning," she smiled back, "It's just into Hogsmeade, and it's not as if you four haven't broken rules before."

"Not with a professor though," Remus pointed out.

She grinned cheekily at him and rocked back on her heels, "Well, I bet you've never had a professor like me before."

They went to breakfast a little before six, with many complaints from Sirius and George while Hermione just rolled her eyes. It was a small little restaurant towards the end of the lane of shops in Hogsmeade. The group sat at a round table, and Sirius seemed about to start snoring. They ordered and Hermione suddenly lit up to find that one of the girls that had graduated a few years before her was there and largely pregnant, so she got up and left to go and speak to her.

"So, Harry's told me something interesting this morning," George said brightly, grinning pointedly at Remus as he glared over at Harry as he played with his silverware. "I find it incredibly fascinating. I do believe Hermione would find it extremely interesting as well."

"Oh yeah?" Remus hummed, "Well, James likes Luna."

"Moony!" James yelped, making Sirius snort and blink around sleepily as George coughed on his orange juice, Peter trying not to laugh loudly as Harry blinked back at him.

"Would she be my step-mother then?" Harry asked, tilting his head and squinting a little at him as James gaped and sputtered while Sirius laughed with Peter.

"I leave for not even five minutes!" Hermione huffed, frowning at them before reclaiming her seat in between Harry and George. "What is it this time?"

"If James and Luna got married, would Luna be my step-mum?" Harry asked her.

Hermione blinked at him before blinking at James, "You told Harry?"

"_I_ didn't," James glared at Remus as grimaced behind his glass.

"Well, you obviously don't have a problem with it," Hermione smirked at Harry.

"Should I?" he questioned, "I mean, I'm pretty sure he can't help who he likes. And at least it's Luna and not someone I detest, like Parkinson. I don't know why he would even like Pansy in the first place anyway, she's awful. Oh, anyway – no, I don't have a problem with it."

"Hmm, can't help who he likes," George repeated as Remus took to glaring at him again, "Why, Harry, that sounds like splendid advice for other table patrons."

"Oh, leave him alone," Hermione frowned, "If he doesn't want to talk about it, then don't make him talk about it."

"_I_ didn't want to talk about it, but you made me!" James argued.

"Well, yes, but you offered the information willingly," Hermione shrugged, "I'm fairly certain that Remus would just shut down completely."

"Wow, she does know us too well," Sirius grinned.

* * *

"Uhh, Hermione?"

Hermione lifted her head up from the stacks of paperwork and blinked up at James as he looked down at her in amusement. She had several quills lost in her hair, and papers were scattered everywhere. She grimaced and cleared her throat, setting a few papers aside and digging a couple of quills out of her hair before looking pointedly up at him, "Yes?"

He grinned a little and motioned to the paperwork, "Do you have a minute to talk?"

"Oh, sure," she said, digging the final quill out of her hair and waving him to one of the chairs. "What about?"

"It's kind of about this whole Luna thing," James fidgeted, "Am I a bad person?"

"Why would you ever be a bad person for liking Luna?" she asked curiously.

"I mean, I got married to Lily and everything, and I – "

"Stop," she said, cutting him off and frowning at him, "James, you are seventeen. You have not been married. Technically speaking, Harry isn't really your son. We've been over this before, and you're certainly not a bad person to go and like Luna."

"Okay," he sighed before sitting up a little straighter, "And, look, about Remus…he never really liked girls before. What I mean is, none of them really interested him. He's not gay. At least, I don't think."

Hermione grinned and cleared her throat to get him back on topic.

"Anyway, this is kind of new for him. He's confused and he wants to just ignore it more than anything, but considering who he's friends with it's somewhat impossible. I'm just saying that if he acts funny, it's because he wants to ignore it but he knows that you know and so that's making it harder for him to ignore it."

"Oh," she smiled, "I was getting worried he was starting to hate me again."

"Of course not!" James blinked, "Anyone that hates you is completely bonkers."

She chuckled, "Thank you. So what are you going to do about Luna?"

"Is nothing an option?" James winced, slumping further into his seat.

"No," she frowned before smiling softly at him, "Would you like me to dig things up?"

"I'd love it if you did," he grinned, standing and pecking her temple, "Thank you, Hermione."

"Any time, James," she smiled back as he turned to leave, "I'm glad you four are settling in."

"Oh yeah, there's no getting rid of us now," he grinned before he walked out of the door.

* * *

**I know originally I said I was probably going to put Sirius with either Luna or Ginny, but then again I like Ginny with Harry and Sirius with Luna was kind of weird. I tried for that in the beginning but it felt like it didn't go with this story. So I tried with James and Luna, and I know a lot of you have been asking if I was planning on that happening, and I'm glad several of you noticed, and so that's what I'm planning now! That may be what next chapter is all about….**


	27. The Jabberwock, With Eyes of Flame,

Luna was certainly odd; there was no doubt about that. Some days she would forgo wearing shoes and other days she would bewitch an article of clothing to do something. There were even some days when she would do both and so much more. She spoke honestly and hardly cared what other people though, although if she didn't she never let on. She often dressed airily, as if attempting to match her wardrobe to her voice, and to Hermione she was just…calm, and peaceful, and she would often make Hermione calm herself. She'd only seen Luna rattled several times, and those were few and far between that they were special occasions.

They'd become better friends after the Battle, as Hermione had so many awful things swarming her aura that Luna felt was her duty to pick clean. At the beginning, Hermione was annoyed before growing tired of whatever game she was playing and then gradually accepting the fact that Luna was not leaving any time soon. She found herself hoping some days that she wouldn't.

They were very close, and to Hermione it was nice to have someone to practically know how you were feeling and what you were thinking, and it was especially nice to know someone who was somewhat girly but not terribly so. Ginny, bless her soul, didn't know there were names for the different types of sleeves until Luna told her.

"I've never really had a proper sleepover before," Luna informed Hermione, stretching her arms up above her head to offer a place for Hermione to set her tea, making Hermione chuckle and shake her head at her as she handed the girl her mug, walking around to her arm chair as she took a sip of her own. "I am wondering about the occasion though."

Hermione almost gagged on her tea, stopping from burning her throat but still managing to hurt her tongue. She pressed her lips together and hid it behind her mug, thinking as Luna inspected the mug and swirled around the contents to see the different shapes the trails of milk made. Luna, as stated before, was not in the social norm. She would accept that James liked her without a big fuss, and they would rationally talk and come to a conclusion. This was another reason Hermione liked Luna – no fusses. With Ginny, she'd have to spend three hours and several pints of ice cream to soothe her into rational thinking.

"Actually, I have something to discuss with you," Hermione said, lowering her mug and crossing her legs around it.

"Oh, I hope it's good news," Luna said, still staring down into her cup. "Although, if you like bad news, then I suppose that would be good news."

Hermione smiled a little and arched an eyebrow at her as she finally took a drink, "Well, I have recently discovered that James likes you."

Luna's eyes widened and she coughed, yelping a little at the heat of the tea, moving her hand under her chin to catch any liquid that spilled out. Hermione blinked and watched the reaction as the normally spaced out blonde blushed brilliantly and moved to find a place to set the mug down.

"If you're just having me on, that's not very nice," Luna finally spoke in her airy tone, frowning back at her, the blush staying as she wiped her hand on her pajama pants.

"I'm not," Hermione grinned, "The honest truth, Gryffindor's honor. He somewhat told me himself."

"Somewhat?" she tilted her head at her.

"We'll blame Remus," she smiled as she sipped her tea.

"What're we blaming Remus for?"

Hermione looked up and smiled at him as Luna made a squeaking sound and covered her face with her hoodie, drawing it tight around her face by the drawstrings.

"Everything," Hermione snapped teasingly, making him roll his eyes and grin back at her. "Do you have your homework?"

"Yes, and I'm ever so sorry that my lycanthropy caused me to miss out on your class," he smirked back, "I'm sure it was one of the best lessons you've taught yet."

"It was," she sniffed before pointing at the kitchen counter behind him, "Just set it over there, I'll grade it later."

"Alright. Uhm," he set it down and pointed at Luna, arching an eyebrow back at Hermione as Luna flopped onto her side, still with her legs crossed and the hoodie drawn around her face.

"We're talking about feelings – or, really, Luna's feelings," Hermione smiled, "I think she'd appreciate it if you'd come back at another time."

"Ahh," he nodded, turning back to the fireplace, "Good luck, Luna!"

"Thanks," she squeaked, waiting until he was gone to sit up and pull the hoodie from her face, her hair askew as she looked back at Hermione with a wide-eyed innocence, "Does he really?"

"Luna, why would I lie to you?" Hermione questioned.

"To spare my feelings, or play a very cruel prank, or – or…" she pursed her lips, trying to think of anything that Hermione would actually do, but couldn't find anything. "It really isn't possible."

"Why not?" she asked.

Luna huffed, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world, and her voice got a slightly harder edge to it as she ticked off her fingers. "He's smart, funny, nice, a good duelist, good looking, an excellent Quidditch player," she said, looking at Hermione dully, "Have you ever heard the expression – 'all the good ones are taken, fictional, or gay?'" Hermione, who had unfortunately been taking a drink of her tea, snorted and laughed back at Luna, who smiled a little at her accomplishment before shaking her head and returning to her airy state, "What I'm saying is that it's far too good to be true. Besides, I don't see how he could possibly fancy me."

"Go on with that topic, tell me how you feel," Hermione deadpanned, although Luna took this seriously.

"I am weird, I accept that and acknowledge it. I hunt down supposedly make believe creatures when we live in a world of magic so excuse me. I do things that most people would have others locked up into a mental hospital for. Hermione, I gave my headband cat ears and made them twitch!"

"Ooh, can I borrow them sometime?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, of course," she shrugged before shaking her head, "There is absolutely nothing appealing about me at all."

"Luna, you are weird," Hermione stated as she moved to sit on the couch next to her, watching as she played with her hoodie sleeves, "But that does not make it a bad thing. You're brilliant and funny and so very sweet, I really don't think anyone quite deserves you!"

"That's just it," Luna whispered fearfully, "What if people see us together and think that I'm not good enough for him?"

"Luna Lovegood," Hermione said sternly as she stood, "You are the best person on the face of this planet, and I will not allow you to criticize and demean yourself instead of going and dating a boy you fancy! This is not a joke, I'm being extremely honest right now and really, we both know you know when I lie!"

Luna sat and stared at her for a few moments before smiling softly up at her, "He likes me?"

Hermione smiled back and sat down once again, patting her knee, "He likes you."

Luna smiled to herself and picked her knees up, wrapping her arms around them and blushing slightly, "He likes me."

Hermione practically beamed before wrapping her arms around the bundle of Luna and hugging her tightly, glad to see that this had worked out after all.

* * *

"James Potter!" Hermione gasped as she was lifted off of her feet, blinking when James set her back on her feet. She was still picking up from that morning, where Ginny had popped in and added in to the sleepover madness before escorting Luna down to breakfast. She'd been just about to head down to her classroom when James had popped in.

He was beaming brightly at her before swooping in and pecking her soundly on the lips, making her blink back before he hugged her once again, "I love you!"

"Whoa, save that for Luna, mate," Sirius grinned from the doorway as Remus rolled his eyes, Peter glancing back at Remus before looking warily at James.

"You are brilliant and if I wasn't crazy about Luna then you would totally have to deal with me!" James said in a rush, making Hermione snort before laughing and hugging him voluntarily.

"You're welcome, James," she grinned back at him, "Now go to class."

He immediately deflated and his grin turned into a scowl as Sirius and Peter groaned, Remus chuckling at his friends. "You just _had_ to ruin my happy mood, didn't you?"

"Go," she insisted, smiling at them as she watched them leave. Shaking her head with the smile still on her face, she wiped her mouth on the back of her sleeve before reaching for her bag and the stack of papers. As she walked to her classroom, she read over the homework, slowing as she read over Remus's as confusion showed on her face. Considering she didn't have her answer key with her, she might've been wrong, but his grade wasn't as good as she had expected. Thinking back, this had been consistent since they'd gotten back from Christmas break. She hummed and shook the worry away, quickening her step once again. Perhaps it was just stress.

* * *

"Ow! Okay, I get it, don't kiss her again! But Merlin, that hurt!" James rubbed at the spot where Remus had just punched him, glaring at him as he walked along the hallway with him. "Stupid werewolf."

Remus shot him a look before sighing and pouting a little.

"Uh-oh," Sirius hummed, "James, you hurt his feelings. Apologize!"

"No, I can assure you I'm used to that – although it's not the best insult with my disease that you've created, you could do better," Remus grinned as James rolled his eyes at him and looked at him pointedly, "I'm just upset that I have to go to our next class."

"But our next class is Hermione's class," Peter piped up before quietly saying "ohh" as it dawned on him.

"Honestly, just man up and talk to her about it," Sirius frowned, "What's the worst she could do?"

"Reject me, stop being friends with me, fail me," he began before Sirius cut him off.

"Alright, you've obviously thought about that too much to be healthy," he decided before James brightened and grinned at him.

"Alright, best case scenario then?" he asked. Remus blinked at him as he shrugged back, "Good thoughts, optimism, when you wish upon a star – you never know!"

"See, he doesn't know, because he doesn't want to get his hopes up," Sirius supplied.

"I really don't want to talk about this in a very _public_ hallway," he hissed back as the other three blinked and looked around, as if they were surprised that there were other people in the hallway.

"You don't want to talk about it at all," James frowned, "And that's your problem. You just want to ignore it and let it lie and not deal with it and hope it fixes itself."

"Yes, and I'm attempting to do so without my nosy friends interrupting!"

"Your nosy friends are just trying to help you, Mate," Sirius sniffed.

"Look, I don't _want_ to fancy her, really, it's making my life a complete and utter hell, but I can't help it, so I just want it to go away or – or something. I don't _want_ to do anything about it, I just want to be left alone without all of these freaking emotions screwing with my brain," Remus insisted, looking at them very seriously. "In all honesty, I think I'm close to failing that class, and if she catches on…well, let's just say that Clodius Albinus will have had the right idea."

"Okay, I know we'll regret this, but who the hell is Claude Asbestos?" Sirius deadpanned.

"Clodius Albinus was a Roman usurper proclaimed emperor who offed himself because he was defeated in battle," Remus answered.

"Well, at least you didn't go through a battle," Peter chirped with a grin.

"Physically speaking, anyway," James shrugged as Remus groaned and walked into the classroom, dreading the emotional turmoil he was about to go through.

* * *

**I have finally finished painting a weird picnic/storage basket for my friend. I was supposed to have had it done in February and it's the fifth of July. Whoops! **

**Anyway, this one talks about feelings and things that nobody likes. But hey, at least James and Luna are together! Yay!**


	28. Came Whiffling Through the Tulgey Wood,

**I'm back from vacation! Woo! I got a friggin' sunburn so that's always _nice!_ Nobody else got a sunburn except me! *pouts***

* * *

He should've started worrying when Hermione looked at him funny when he came into class. He should've started worrying when she shook her head before jumping into her lecture. He should've started worrying when she glanced at him and bit her lower lip a few times during the lecture. But no, he started worrying when she called him up after classes.

James and Sirius had questioned her about it, but she'd glared at them and they were forced to give him sympathetic looks and walk on to their next class, Peter waiting by the door for them before walking off with them as well.

"Remus," Hermione said, very seriously, leaning against her desk and crossing her arms over her chest, "What's going on?"

Remus fidgeted with the strap on his bag for a moment before going for naïve and innocent, tilting his head and blinking at her, "What're you talking about, Hermione?"

She gave him a look that said she didn't buy it before rolling her eyes and grabbing a piece of paper from the stack of homework. He prayed he hadn't done what James had when he was infatuated with Lily and everyone knew, which was drawing or writing absentmindedly on the side of the parchment. James had gotten very many strange looks from the professors when it first started, as he'd turned in his homework like that.

Instead, however, every margin was clear of doodles or writings. Remus looked curiously back at Hermione, his confusion real.

"Remus, this is – to put it bluntly – crap compared to what you used to turn in."

"Oh, homework," Remus hoped he kept the tone of relief out of his voice. Apparently not, Hermione was arching an eyebrow at him.

She shook her head and frowned, "What's going on with you? Normally, you turn in the best, and I asked the other teachers at lunch, and it's only in my class that this is happening. Now, what is it?"

"I – uhh…" All of Remus's thought processing went straight out of the window, and he was left to flounder and stutter.

"Is it me? Am I doing something wrong? Remus, I thought you were okay with me now," she looked extremely concerned that it was all her fault, and Remus shook his head and tried to find anything except the truth to tell her.

"No, Hermione, you're brilliant, it's just – uhh, that is to say that I – uhh," if he kept going on like this, she was definitely going to find out.

Just whenever he was trying to build up enough of a lie, Hermione gave a sigh and moved around to the other side of her desk, opening up a drawing, "Alright. I'll make a deal with you. If you can pick your grade back up in two weeks, you can have…this." She grinned and held out something that Remus hadn't seen in ages. She looked at the dark cover before looking back up at him as he blinked at it. It was basically like a briefcase, with different dividers and sections, and he used to put it in his bag when he'd had it. "I haven't opened it, if you were wondering, but I _am_ curious." Apparently, she didn't know what it was. "So, do we have a deal?"

"I feel like I'm selling my soul to you or something," he snorted before grinning and nodding, "Yes, we have a deal. Where did you get that, by the way?"

"McGonagall," she said with a hum, twirling it around on its corner on her desk, "She said she forgot to give it back once your seventh year was done and asked me to."

"And so you're holding my drawings as ransom?" he asked with an even bigger grin, watching as her eyes lit up and a smile appeared on her face.

"You draw?" she asked.

"Yes," he said warily as she looked back down at the thing with renewed interest.

"Hmm," she hummed before smiling back up at him, "Well, once you get your grade back up, I'll be happy to give them back."

"Conniving," he smirked as he crossed his arms over his chest, "Did Draco and Blaise teach you?"

"No, Fred and George," she corrected before sticking her tongue out at him.

He chuckled and grinned back up at her, "I am sorry that it's been slipping, Hermione, it's just been…personal stuff that I've been letting get to me. It won't happen again."

"It better not," she muttered playfully as she sat down, watching as he walked out of her classroom before she sat up and called after him, "And it's 'Professor Granger!'" She heard him laugh and shook her head, a small grin working its way on her face. Somehow, he really had become her favorite Marauder, and she wasn't all that opposed to it.

* * *

"It's been two weeks."

Remus looked up from his book and grimaced at Hermione as she looked down her nose at him. She was dressed in a red tank top and jeans, barefoot, with her hair barely keeping in its hold on the top of her head. James and Sirius had dragged Peter out to the Quidditch pitch, and so he'd pretended to be taking a shower and promised to be out once he was done. However, he grabbed a book from his shelf, made his way out to the living room, and plopped quite happily on the couch. He stayed like that for about an hour, wearing his old jeans and a t-shirt that he, James and Sirius weren't quite sure on who the original owner was, but the three passed it around. However, Peter thought that sharing clothes was exceptionally weird, and thus didn't participate.

"Uh-huh," Remus said as he sat up, looking up at her and trying not to notice that her shirt was rather form-fitting. He'd concentrated on his homework and would keep his eyes trained on his parchment in class, and he'd thought he'd improved, but the look on Hermione's face said otherwise.

She tilted her head towards the stairs to the basement, "Come on." He winced and stood, following her and Flooing with her to her flat. They walked through her bedroom and came to a stop in front of a door that Remus wasn't quite sure was the purpose of.

She pressed her back against it and looked very seriously up at him. "Now, you have to _swear_ to me that this doesn't leave this room. You are not to tell Sirius, James, or Peter, or any of the Weasleys. The only other people who know this are Harry and Luna. I am doing this because I trust you, and I…" She bit her lower lip before grimacing, "I guess I'm kind of embarrassed."

He tilted his head down at her in confusion and she sighed, turning the knob slowly as she spoke, "See, the truth is, I'm not always bookish and I kind of…" Remus blinked into the room as she hid her face with her arms and backed away to let him enter, "I kind of paint."

"_Kind of?_" Remus questioned, turning back around to gape at her. "Hermione, this is gorgeous! These are amazing, why are you embarrassed?"

"It's so terribly out of character for me though! I'm not supposed to be into art!" she said before flopping into an armchair in the room, watching him nervously as he looked around at the walls filled with her works.

"Who told you that?" Remus asked, glancing back at her before tilting his head at one that had the Whomping Willow and the Forbidden Forrest.

"I did," she muttered before shaking her head and picking up the weird little briefcase thing, "I'm assuming you've already guessed, but you've improved your grade. Exceeded what it was originally, actually."

Remus grinned and took the case from her, moving and sitting on the couch, motioning her to move and sit next to him. She did so as he unzipped the case, shifting around in the different folders until he found his sketchbook and flipped it open, grimacing at the dust. "I guess this wasn't opened for a while, huh?" He smiled at her when she waved her wand and the dust disappeared, before turning to face her and scoot back to rest his back against an arm rest. "Don't move."

"What?" she asked as he reached forward and grabbed a pencil and eraser and set the sketchpad against his legs, bringing his knees up closer to him.

"Don't move," he grinned before his eyes flicked to the paper and a few _scritch-scritch-scritch_ sounds were heard.

"Why?" she asked slowly, but kept her position anyway. She was facing him as well, arms wrapped around one knee, resting her cheek against it.

"I'm going to draw you," he said with a sigh, looking up and cracking another grin before looking at his paper again, "You can lose the deer in the headlights look, really, it won't hurt. Try smiling, I hear that's what most people go for when they're the subject of a picture." He glanced up and smirked when he saw her smirking as well. "And keep your sarcastic comments to yourself. I'm working."

He worked in silence for a while, glancing up at Hermione every once in a while. She felt…tingly, while under his gaze. Her body somehow knew that it was being drawn, and it felt light and as if the air around it was getting a little thicker. She watched him while he worked, watched the small crease in between his eyebrows and how he twitched his head every time a piece of his hair would get in his way. His eyes though…it was unfair that they were such a pretty color.

He glanced up and one corner of his mouth was tugged, and she tried to get rid of an oncoming blush, before he spoke, "You know, I thought it was weird too. Art, and everything. But it kind of made sense. I needed a way to get whatever got me so obsessed with reading something into something I could keep. So, after I read something I liked, I would draw anything from that book. A particular scene, what I thought a character looked like, some place that was described in it. After a while, I started drawing my friends. And professors. And people I didn't like. I just kept drawing – and that's why McGonagall took up my stuff. I drew all the time in seventh year, before I got here, and she said that she wasn't about to let me fail right before the N.E.W.T.s, and that I'd get it back after the test. I guess she forgot, and I did too. So, Miss Granger, you are the first subject I have drawn since I have been in the nineties."

"I feel honored," she muttered, grinning when he playfully hissed out a "sshh!"

"So, how'd you start?" he asked after a few moments.

"I was…my childhood wasn't all that great," she gave a sigh, "I got picked on a lot. My hair was huge, my teeth were larger, I actually liked schoolwork – I can't even tell you how many times I got shoved into the dirt on the playground. I'd walk home crying. One day, I took an early turn and got lost, and walked past an art gallery. So I just stood there in front of the windows with these tears on my face and someone finally came out of the gallery and saw me. It was one of the artists, and he asked me what was wrong. I told him that the other kids picked on me, and he had me follow him into the gallery. We walked through all of these crowds of people, up until we got to this back room. He sat me down at a table, handed me a piece of paper, and a pencil, and sat down across from me and told me to draw something that gave me hope. I told him I couldn't draw. He said that drawing was a mindset, and I had the potential to get into that mindset, because I was six years old and stopped in front of an art gallery to look at the art inside and didn't look at the toy store next door. So I drew. I still have that picture somewhere at my parents' house. I drew something every single time I got picked on. Needless to say, I got a lot of practice. I got better and better, and I moved on to painting before I came to Hogwarts. When I was thirteen, my mum – without my knowledge – entered one of my paintings into the gallery I'd stopped in when I was six. We went there and I just stared at the wall my painting was on, and all of the other amazing paintings up there. And then someone came up to me and gave me a hug and said 'I knew you could do it.' It was the man from when I was younger. He owned the gallery."

"My childhood wasn't so good either, if it helps," he muttered, his eyes continuously trained on the paper now as he worked, "With the lycanthropy, I was afraid someone would find out, and I'd be treated as a freak that would snap and kill everyone. Sirius, Peter and James found out and I thought that was it, everything was over. But they kept it a secret, and they still did up until we got here and found out that everyone knew anyway. I guess that's when they became my best friends."

Hermione hummed and shut her eyes, a small smile on her face, "Harry and Ron became my best friends when they fought a mountain troll with me."

The scritching stopped and he looked back up at her as she peeked an eye open, "What?"

"Yeah, Hogwarts got weird after you left," she grinned back. "There was something going on every year."

"That sounds…exciting," he looked doubtful of this fact before smiling, "You can move now, by the way, I'm done."

She sighed and stretched, moving next to him to look down at the drawing, "This is…wow. I mean, _wow_. This is brilliant, Remus." She reached up and pecked his cheek, "Thank you."

He grinned and turned to look at her, "Why are you thanking me? I should be thanking you."

"Why?"

"For bringing me here, for giving me my stuff back, for being stationary in one spot for what must've felt like forever…." He looked at her pointedly, "I could go on."

"Don't," she blushed, but couldn't help but smile a little.

Hours later, Hermione woke up on the same couch, hair completely worked out of its band so that it was everywhere, a pressure on her stomach making her look up and blink at Remus's head. She sighed and ran her hands through his hair as he slept, smiling at him for a few moments before finally whispering, "Remus. Remus." She frowned and poked him in the side, making him groan out "what?"

"Let me up," she murmured.

"Why?" he asked with a sigh.

"I hate sleeping on couches," she stated.

"Too bad then," he hummed, and she gave a huff before he sat up. She smiled for a few seconds before he gripped her arms and towed her over so that she was lying with her head on his chest. "Technically not a couch," he muttered when she looked up at him curiously, putting an arm behind his head and settling the other on her waist.

"If McGonagall or anyone else walks in here…" she worried.

"We'll worry about it then," he said before pecking her hair, "Goodnight."

She snorted and rolled her eyes before settling into him, a smile back on her face, "Goodnight."

* * *

**Just to be clear, they didn't do anything except fall asleep on each other. Also, I am so freaking tired right now. My eyes don't know how to stay put anymore, they look over here or over there but I want to look at the screen and it's just weird.**


	29. And Burbled As It Came!

**Two things – one, as soon as I figured out how amazing it would be if Remus was the artsy one, I immediately regretted having Hermione paint. So think of hers more as a pick-me-up rather than something she does just whenever and wherever. She started painting a lot more after the War, it's like a coping mechanism. Remus is more artsy, sketchy, smudges on the fingertips and sides of the hands artsy. Someone pointed out how it just seemed to weigh Hermione down last chapter and didn't really fit, and I completely agree and I agonized over this for ages before finally using the above to deal with it. I still feel a gape hole in my heart though. *sniff***

**Two – Andrew Garfield would make a really wonderful Remus. He's kinda-sorta what I picture for Remus, but not quite, and definitely not his voice. I dunno. Andrew Garfield is pretty though. *grins***

* * *

"And you have been where?"

Remus groaned and buried his face deeper into the pillow. He'd woken up around four in the morning and had accidentally woken Hermione up, and the two agreed that the other Marauders were probably worried about him, so he headed back to the Shrieking Shack, only to find that the three were sound asleep. They obviously weren't too worried about him, so he collapsed into his bed, and had just been rudely awaken by Sirius as he sat on his back.

"Nowhere," he mumbled.

"Yeah, we totally believe that," James scoffed, rolling his eyes.

"You'd have to be _somewhere_," Peter insisted.

"Were you with Hermione? I bet you were. Are you agonizing over blowing everything up with her? If you actually did something I would've thought you'd be happier about it," Sirius frowned.

"I slept on her couch," he answered.

"And where did she sleep?" he prodded.

"Why do you want to know?"

"You're being defensive."

"I am not!"

"Yeah, you are, Moony," James said as he leaned against his wall.

"Did she sleep in her bed?" Peter asked.

Remus grimaced, "No…"

"Did she sleep near you?" James asked.

"Kind of."

"What is '_kind of'_?" Sirius hummed.

"I tugged her on me."

"Wow, you really go all out, don't you?" Sirius scoffed, rolling his eyes and hopping off of him as he sat up and frowned at him. "How many opportunities did you have to kiss her?"

"I lost count after seventeen," he said morosely, "I drew her too."

"_What?_" Sirius whirled around, as he'd been headed towards the door, and James looked between the two in amusement, keeping his mouth shut and sliding down the wall to watch.

"Mate, you don't tell anyone you draw," Peter spoke up with a blink.

"I know," he groaned, flopping into his mattress and rubbing his hands over his eyes, "I need to get over this."

"Oh, you can't," James said, quite happily, making the three look and blink at him as he stood and dusted off his trousers, walking out of the door. The three followed him, Remus tugging on his jacket so he could keep some amount of warmth.

"What do you mean I _can't_?" Remus asked, eyes narrowed, as if James was planning a trick on him, although he looked incredibly happy about it.

"You can't because you're in love with her," he smirked as Remus looked as if he'd been slapped in the face, "Face it – this isn't about some stupid crush or sex or anything. You're in love with Hermione."

"I am not, I – I barely know her!"

"So?" he shrugged and flopped down in an armchair, "Your dreams about her aren't perverted, and you're not like a lovesick puppy trailing her around – "

"Practically," Remus muttered irritably as he sat on the couch, Sirius and Peter quietly discussing this to themselves in the background.

"Face it," James grinned, "You're in love with Hermione."

"Who's in love with Hermione?" Luna questioned as she came up the steps, perching herself on the arm of James's chair and blinking.

"Remus," Sirius answered as he glared over at him.

"Oh, so you finally realized? Congratulations," she smiled at him as he blinked.

"Luna, how could I be in love with her?" he argued.

"How could you not?" she countered, leaving him blinking once again, "I think nearly everyone sees it, if they look hard enough. Besides, what's so bad about being in love?"

"I suppose nothing, but Hermione's my professor, and my friend – it's weird," he huffed.

"Hardly," she hummed, sliding down and slipping into James's lap, "James was my friend before I began dating him. I suppose if he'd been my professor, we might've gotten strange looks, but who cares what anyone else thinks when you're in love?"

"I'm seventeen, I can't be in love," he glared at the ceiling as he slid further in his seat.

"Why not?" James and Luna chorused.

"Are you two sharing one mind?" Sirius grinned as he leaned against the back of the couch, Peter walking to the open armchair, "Remus, Pete and I have come to a conclusion."

"Do I want to hear it?" he asked.

"Probably not," Peter admitted.

"We've agreed that you do seem to be mooning over Hermione too much for you to only fancy her," Sirius stated as he hopped over the back of the couch, "Don't worry, things will probably get better."

"Probably," he scoffed.

"Maybe," Peter echoed.

"We're unsure at the moment," James grinned.

"I think they will," Luna said airily, "The Offish Noisers say so."

"The what?" Remus asked blankly.

"They tell people when good things will come their way," she explained.

"Like Karma, only without bad stuff," James said, making her nod. Sirius and Remus exchanged a glance before grinning at the two.

"If you say so," Remus said, deciding that now would be a good time to let the matter drop.

* * *

Hermione groaned and stretched, curling her fingers around her pillow and burying her face in it before deciding that something was off. She raised her head up and pressed her hand into it, trying to find some lump or something that signified that something was wrong before finding nothing. She tilted her head and saw that nothing seemed out of place on it, so she lay her head back down and inhaled deeply.

_That's_ what was off. It smelled differently. It didn't smell as nice as it used to. She pressed her face into it and inhaled again. It still smelled the same, but it wasn't as good as it had been a night ago. She pursed her lips and thought before freezing and groaning, covering her blushing face with her hands. Remus smelled far better than her pillow ever had. He'd ruined her pillow for her. She had half a mind to go down there and tell him, but decided that that was an awful idea and decided against doing that and embarrassing herself.

No, no, this couldn't possibly be happening. He was a _student_ for Merlin's sake! She shouldn't be attracted to him at all! She'd just ignore it, that's what she would do, just as she always had with all of her other crushes growing up, and then the problem would go away and she'd get over it. Content with this answer to her dilemma, she snuggled back down into her pillow, but scowled when she was reminded that it'd been ruined.

"Note to self," she murmured as she tugged the blankets up over her shoulders, "Get a new pillow."

* * *

**I'm sorry to disappoint, but nothing's going to happen for a while with their relationship. It's like soon-ish but not that soon, you know?**


	30. One, Two! One, Two!

**To a dear Kokotheevilone - yes, I have seen Jensen Ackles, and it is terribly unfair to be that pretty. Like wow, congratulations on your face, sir, how are your eyes that gorgeous? But, I digress. Story time!**

* * *

'Pretty' sounded superficial. It gave off a false sense of happiness and cheeriness that was tinged in dread of the inevitable bad ending. It was a shallow word, bringing to mind images such as pink sundresses and daisies. Not that there was anything wrong with daisies, but it was a word that didn't carry sustenance, that fed off of face value, on the weak and artificial.

'Beautiful' held more meaning, more depth to it. It was something that was hidden and that you only realized after a long period of thought, like the sound of rain or the quietness of a forest. You had to look and see how beautiful something was, it was subtle, but more obvious after it was noticed. It was a good word.

'Gorgeous' brought to mind supermodels with full lips and heavy lidded eyes with scary makeup and sharp nails. After those images had flew off, it became the concentrated look on her face when she was working on something, her eyes trained on whatever it was, eyebrows furrowing, lips parted slightly. It became her tying up her hair and her face while she laughed.

'Sexy' was a word he actively avoided. It never had a proper definition and sounded uncomfortable and foreign on his tongue. He thought about it. Perhaps it was her after she'd just woken up; dressed in a large shirt that probably wasn't hers, her hair messed up and an innocent look in her eyes. It was the touch of her hands as she smoothed back his hair and ran over a scar. The pout she got when she wasn't happy with something but couldn't quite fix it.

Remus sighed and glanced at the glowing green numbers. Just after midnight. He set his chin on his pillow and stared at the wall in between his headboard and nightstand. He was awake at 12: 07 a.m. thinking up adjectives and their meanings about a girl he _didn't_ love? He was pathetic. And maybe a bit of a liar. Or a lot of one. With another sigh, he buried his mouth into his pillow and resumed staring at the wall. A warm feeling washed over him and his eyes started to shut as a smile twitched at his lips. _Who cared if he loved her? _he thought. _It wasn't as if anything was going to happen between them…._

* * *

Hermione groaned and glared at her pillow. She was in a strange position that somewhat resembled the downward facing dog yoga position, although her arms were crossed over her chest. She'd been tossing and turning all night, and even after she'd gotten a new pillow, it wasn't good enough. Realizing that this wasn't as big of a deal as she made it out to be, Hermione sat on her knees and backhanded the pillow out of the way. Completely pillowless, Hermione lay down and tugged the blankets up to her chin before huffing. She was a natural cuddler, and with no pillow, she was not comfortable.

_Maybe if you had a certain werewolf wizard in your bed, you'd be able to sleep better._

"Who said that?" Hermione grumbled irritably, although a blush rose to her cheeks, "Certainly not me, noo…. Damn pillow-ruiner." She groaned and rolled over onto her stomach, glaring at her headboard, "Get _over_ yourself, Hermione, he's a bloody student!" _But not for long_, a traitorous voice whispered, sounding suspiciously like Ginny. _Just imagine, soon enough, he'll be out of that Hogwarts uniform._ "God, I'm perverted," Hermione mumbled, glad that she had stopped the images from getting worse than him without the cloak on. _Or you just need to get laid._ "Alright Ginny, get out of my head, this isn't funny anymore." The voice was silent, and Hermione wondered for a moment if she had won, before she gave a sigh and bit her lower lip. _Wonder what it would be like to bite his…._ Hermione released her lip with a gasp as her eyes widened. That had been in her normal thought voice. With a loud groan, she stuffed the covers over her face and hoped she'd suffocate.

* * *

"Hermione!"

"Ten minutes!" Hermione promised, upside down in an armchair and tugging on a knee sock, working her hair into a high ponytail while she was in the position. James and Remus watched her in amusement before she jumped up and dashed into her bedroom to change from the t-shirt and shorts she had on. It was another full moon, except this time she and the Marauders would be accompanying Remus into the forest. As it was February, Hermione was trying in vain to keep warm while she was outside. When she came back out, she was dressed in jeans and boots, with a long sleeved shirt, a hoodie, and a coat in her arms, along with a blanket and a thick book.

"Going camping or something, are we?" James pestered.

She blew a strand of hair out of her eyes and frowned, "Excuse me, but I'm the only one who'll be out there without fur."

"Hey, just ask, I'm sure Remus'll cuddle up with you," James teased. Hermione stilled for a moment, eyes wide, before she regained her composure.

"Remus wouldn't want to 'cuddle up' with me," she hummed, rolling her eyes as she put on her coat, "Now, can we get going? My living room isn't big enough for a giant wolf, despite outward appearances."

"Hermione, it isn't a spontaneous thing," Remus grinned, "It usually happens about the same time every time. It's not exactly a shocker."

She blushed a little and moved past them and to the fireplace, "Hush, you."

* * *

They were deep in the woods, her back against the trunk of a tree, patches of snow along the ground where the trees hadn't caught it. Sirius was sniffing through the snow as Remus watched on dully, head on his paws, watching him curiously before the big black dog yipped and jumped back. The stag snorted, giving an amused sort of look as a rat hung from one of its antlers. If anyone was just walking through, they would've assumed that Hermione was the next Snow White. James quickly turned back, picking Peter off of his head and setting him onto Sirius's, before sighing and sitting next to her. She offered him the blanket and he declined.

"So – how are you, Hermione?" James asked.

"Fine," she said slowly, watching him carefully. "How's Luna?"

"Great," he grinned before humming, looking up at the limbs of the trees, "I was just wondering…do you have a type?"

"Excuse me?" she blinked, the blanket slipping off of her shoulders a little.

"You know, what you look for in a guy?"

Hermione frowned at him as a low rumbling sound came from Remus, James eyed him cautiously before turning his attention back to her, looking at her expectantly. "James, I'm not shallow enough to have a 'type.'"

"Well, what are some traits that would get a guy to date you?"

"Not badger me about having a type," she said in a clipped tone, looking back to her book. Sirius sounded as if he were laughing before settling Peter on a stump and rolling around in a patch of grass.

"No, really, I'm curious," he insisted.

"I suppose intelligence is important, I'd like to have a conversation with him…sense of humor, caring, able to put up with my habits," she said, looking up at the leaves.

"What kind of habits?" he blinked.

"I cuddle in my sleep," she muttered, eyes downcast as she pulled her arms under the blanket and tried to read.

"Aww," Sirius cooed, making her look up and glare at him before he gave a cheeky grin and transformed again.

"I wish I didn't!" she crowed, hiding her face with her fabric-covered hands, "I can't sleep if I don't have a pillow or something! I couldn't sleep at all last night!"

"Why not?" James questioned.

She murmured something about her pillow being ruined before shaking her head and turning back to her book. James, apparently satisfied with her answer, changed back into his Animagus form and left her to sit and read before Sirius happily bounded over to her and laid his head on her ankle. With a blink, she grinned softly and settled down into the trunk of the tree.

"Ugh," Remus groaned hours later, feeling the cold rip through him as Hermione looked sympathetically up from her book. Sirius had migrated back over towards the stump in his sleep, James and Peter asleep as well. Only Hermione was awake, lighting the pages of her book with her wand tip.

"Come here," she said, folding a corner of her page and shifting underneath the blankets. He moved over to her and sat next to her, blinking when she unwound the blanket from her completely and settled it over him. He shook his head and moved half of it back to her, leaning into both her and the tree trunk before settling his head on her shoulder, unaware at how she tensed up before relaxing again.

"Thank you," he mumbled tiredly before his jaw popped when he yawned, "What're you reading?"

"Old book," she muttered back, now fiddling with her fingers underneath the blanket. Remus hummed and yawned once again before he was quiet and still. Hermione checked and smiled when she saw that he was asleep, bringing one of her hands out from under the warmth of the blanket and running it through his hair, keeping it away from his face. She bit the inside of her cheek before pecking the top of his head, settling into him and opening the book once again then returning her hand under the blanket. Remus smiled a little, keeping silent so that she didn't know he'd been awake. Hermione was awake for a little bit longer before her body went slack and the book slipped from her hands onto the forest floor. Remus wrapped an arm around her and brought her closer into him, rearranging the blanket when it started to slip from her shoulders. She hummed and leaned into his chest, tugging the blanket up to her mouth, sighing when Remus pecked the top of her head.

* * *

**Fluff since I said it'd take them a while to get together :) It makes me happy ~**


	31. And Through And Through

**I'm watching the episode of Friends when Monica and Chandler got engaged and Rachel steals Monica's thunder and god Rachel is such a bitch like WHOA no just just no no NOPE **

**Also you guys keep asking me to update but _I don't have anything_ so here have this thing**

* * *

Luna stared up at the leaves, Ginny shivering next to her, teeth chattering as she followed the blonde Ravenclaw through the woods, tripping and cursing the entire way, even as she was watching her feet, while all Luna had to do was keep staring at the minimal leaves in the trees as she floated gracefully along. She'd been having a very nice dream when Luna had hopped on top of her back and dragged her out of her warm bed and into the cold Forbidden Forest. Ginny had questioned and complained for the first few minutes, but decided that glaring at the back of her friend's head was a much better tactic. She thought about turning around and going back multiple times, but then decided that either something would happen to Luna and she'd feel responsible, or she'd get lost and something would happen to _her_.

"The Offish Noisers wouldn't let you get lost if you wanted to go back," Luna said suddenly, not even looking back at Ginny.

"Luna, I'm just curious as to why I'm out here with you," she stated.

"Easter break is coming up soon," she declared instead, "Then we have to take the N.E.W.T.s."

"Is this some weird study session?" she asked.

Luna turned back and smiled before shaking her head, "I'm asking you to keep an open mind, is all, and that it's only a few months."

Ginny blinked before frowning and arching an eyebrow, "You know something I don't, don't you?"

"Well I certainly can't know everything," she hummed as she continued walking, "I'm sure that you know things that I don't."

"Do I have to guess?" she asked instead before groaning, "Luna, you know I hate the guessing thing."

"You might like it!" she sang.

Ginny turned her head up to the sky and groaned louder, "Fine. Fine! Uhm…is it a thing?"

"Perhaps, depending on how you would want to describe it," she said.

"Is it…a person?"

"Close…."

"People?" she arched an eyebrow.

"Yes," she smiled as she nodded.

"Alright, alright…people I know?"

She grinned wider and nodded once again, dancing over the forest floor, arms held over her head before she gasped and grabbed Ginny's arm, tugging her closer and having them walk slowly and quietly. Luna slowly peeked her head over a bush before beaming and having Ginny look as well. The redhead slowly mimicked her movements and glanced at the small clearing. There was a big black dog drooling over a stump with a rat on his head, a stag nearby a tree sleeping peacefully. Towards the farther end, there was Remus and Hermione, sleeping soundly, one of Remus's hands on Hermione's waist, her head resting on his chest, blanket tugged up to her mouth.

Ginny gaped and looked over to Luna, who grabbed her arm and whispered excitedly, "Remus is very much in love with Hermione and I believe that Hermione may or may not return his feelings – but of course they can't do anything until _after_ he graduates – and the Offish Noisers are telling me that very good things are to happen to our friends!"

Ginny just blinked at her before poking her head out of the bush again to frown at the couple before pulling back and stating rather quietly, "It does make sense…and it would explain…" Ginny blinked again before grinning a grin that Fred and George would've been proud of. She got out of the bush, making James snort and lift his head and blink as Sirius toppled off the stump and squished poor Peter, and called out, "Oh, so you're _that_ kind of professor?"

Hermione blinked and opened her eyes as Remus frowned and kept his shut, sliding down the tree trunk and tugging the blanket over his head. "What?" Hermione asked blankly, sitting up and staring at her as Luna patted James's head, regardless of whether he was now human or not.

"Merlin, you're no fun when you first wake up," Ginny sighed, rolling her eyes, hands on her hips, "Why're you cuddling up with Remus?"

"Because he was there," she snorted as she stood, folding her arms across her chest to keep warmth there, "You know I basically latch on to anything within arm's reach."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Ginny deadpanned before grinning at the lump of blanket and legs behind Hermione. "'Lo, Remus!"

"Ginny. Hey. You're loud," he said, smiling a little and wrapping the blanket around his shoulders instead.

She grimaced as a response, "Right, sorry. I mean, of course, I know why Bill won't hang around us after a full moon, but…"

"Nah, it's fine," he sighed, grabbing the blanket up in his arms and standing, "I've been around James and Sirius on their worst days after a full moon – so you're not as loud as them."

"What?" Sirius yelled, making him wince before glaring at him as he grinned back cheekily.

Hermione stretched, interlocking her fingers and bending back, a movement that made Remus glance at her before looking away, "Anything with padding sounds lovely right now. I'll even settle with a couch."

"You know Hermione must be tired when she'll sleep on a couch," Ginny teased, "Tell me – did you forget that you're a witch and conjure things again?"

Hermione froze before hitting herself in the forehead, muttering about how Ginny was just as bad as Ron, and stooped down to pick up her book before yawning.

"Oh, come to the Shrieking Shack, Hermione!" Luna bounced, "I need to perform readings for Divination to pass!"

"Luna!" Hermione groaned, "You know I think Divination is rubbish!"

"Oh, you too?" Remus hummed, in the process of folding Hermione's blanket before he handed it back to her.

"Complete rubbish," she insisted, but bit her lower lip for a moment. Luna was the only one to catch this, and blinked before she spoke again.

"Well, if you won't let me practice Divination, can I drop by for that book I left?" she asked.

"Oh, uhm, sure, but I wasn't aware you'd left a book," Hermione blinked as Ginny rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Well, if we're all done here, my bed is lonely," she said as she began to walk through the woods, the boys waving to Hermione and Luna and walking along behind her.

Luna waited for a few moments to make sure that the group was gone before she turned to Hermione worriedly, "It's not getting any better, is it?"

Hermione blinked before sighing, shaking her head, "I've thought about going to Mungo's, but I have school, and I couldn't explain this to McGonagall and the other professors."

"Hermione, this is incredibly serious," Luna frowned, "You were worried about it before school even began, you told me yourself."

"I know, I know, it's just…" she faltered, staring down at her blanket nestled in her arms, "It's easy to ignore it most days. And if something was wrong with it, then…can you imagine how everyone else would react? I'd be lucky to live by myself again."

"Hermione, you read the books, you know that this could be dangerous."

"And I also know that if the books are right, I only have a short time period to live," Hermione huffed, "I mean, I'd rather not know I'm going to die soon, Luna."

Luna faltered, her stride stopping, and Hermione walked a few more paces before stopping as well and sighing. The blonde girl tentatively stood next to her, rubbing her back as she held the blanket tighter and shut her eyes.

* * *

**I just keep making Hermione go through all tons of shit, don't I? Ahh well – I'm the author, it's my job!**


	32. The Vorpal Blade Went Snicker-Snack!

**I never liked _the Hunchback of Notre Dame_ when I was younger, mostly because I didn't get it (which, let's face it, it has a lot of stuff that kids wouldn't get) (that and Frollo scared the shit out of me with that "Hellfire" song okay) but I absolutely love it now. "Out There" is my favorite song. **

**Also, in regards to last chapter – you guys need to chill. I won't hurt Hermione…much….**

* * *

"Knock, knock."

"Who's there?" Hermione asked, looking up from her stack of papers to grade and leaning back behind her desk, smiling, as she had already recognized the voice.

"The Boy," he answered as she stood and headed towards her office door.

"The Boy Who?" she questioned.

"The Boy Who Lived, of course," he stated cheekily, hearing Hermione snort and chuckling from the other side.

"That was lame," she grinned, "I don't even think I'll open the door for you now."

"You might want to – I brought you something."

Hermione sighed lengthily and opened the door before grinning brightly and swooping the little boy out of his arms, twirling him around and snuggling into his bright turquoise hair, both of them making happy screaming sounds as Harry chuckled and wished he had a camera to capture the moment.

"Minnie, Minnie, Minnie," Teddy sang happily, giggling when she peppered the little boy with kisses. "Love Minnie!"

"I love you too, Teddy," she said, hugging him tighter before settling him on her hip and hugging Harry.

"Finally, I get a hug," he teased as she chuckled, "I spent forever thinking up that knock-knock joke and I'm just now getting a hug."

"Well, if you were as cute as Teddy, you'd get a hug quicker," she grinned, waving him inside and shutting the door behind him, moving back to sit at her desk with Teddy in her lap, a clump of her hair falling over his head as Harry sat at a chair on the other side of the desk.

"I heard Teddy isn't the only Lupin who's captured your attention," Harry smirked, waggling his eyebrows at his friend as she blushed and looked away from him and at Teddy's hair as she pretended to fix it.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she sniffed as he snorted.

"Oh come on, Hermione," he grinned, "Just say it – you'll feel better."

Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes, running a hand across her stomach, "I doubt it." Harry leaned closer to her and stared at her pointedly before she sighed, "Fine, yes, you and your girlfriend are correct, I like Remus."

"Brilliant," he smiled before seeing her crestfallen face. "What's wrong?"

"This can't be happening," she sighed, running a hand through Teddy's hair.

"Why?" he blinked.

"Harry, honestly, he's a student!" she scoffed, "That's kind of a major restriction."

"No-no," Teddy sang, contributing to the conversation very nicely. Hermione nodded back at her friend, agreeing with Teddy.

"Well, if you want to get technical, he graduated twenty years ago." Harry winced when he saw Hermione's glare, "Right, sorry. But he won't be a student for long. What, you've only got the rest of March, April, May, and then June, yeah? Plus you'd get Easter holiday to yourself. It's not so bad."

"Oh, my parents have asked if the Marauders wanted to spend Easter holiday at home with us," Hermione sighed, "Bless them for being kind, but curse them for it too."

Harry chuckled, "Hermione, I don't see what the big deal is."

"The _big deal_, Harry James Potter, is that I am a teacher, he is my student, and when he and the other boys graduate, they're all going to go off and forget all about me."

"Bye-bye," Teddy announced before a quill captured his attention.

"Hermione, you're obviously mental," Harry grinned, "The Marauders love the hell out of you."

His eyes widened as Hermione glared at him when Teddy popped his head back up and cheerfully announced "Hell!"

"Honestly, Harry, you're no better than George!" she huffed as she stood to carry Teddy up to her flat.

"Hey, I just let it slip, George was the one who taught him those words," Harry stated as he followed, stopping right behind her as she blinked at the state of her living room, four boys grinning sheepishly at her as feathers fluttered down.

"Uhm," Peter began, "We were chasing an owl."

Hermione's eyes darted up to the ceiling before remembering that she didn't have a ceiling fan. "Then what's with the feathers?"

"Err – apparently owls don't take to being hexed," James shrugged.

"Who knew!" Sirius chirped happily while Remus smacked his hand to his forehead. Hermione's mouth dropped open as Teddy squirmed to be put down, Harry looking around for any bits of owl on her living room.

"It's that big pink thing in your kitchen, by the way," James said, pointing, making Hermione sigh and finally set Teddy on his feet, making him practically sprint towards Remus, who grinned and crouched down to pick him up.

"Moony, Moony!" he stated excitedly, "Moony love Minnie!" Remus's eyes widened and Harry froze before Harry recovered for them both.

"Yes, Teddy, we know you love Minnie," he said, but Hermione was preoccupied by staring at the piles of feathers and the featherless owl hooting darkly on her kitchen counter.

"Uhm…Hermione?" James asked, "Are you…erm, are you mad?"

She turned and stared at him before simply stating, "There are feathers all over my living room and a naked owl in my kitchen. I don't quite know what to feel at the moment." She turned back to the owl and blinked when it held out it's leg again, taking the parchment from it and reading over it. "What're you writing to the Daily Prophet for?"

"Ahh," Remus said as he settled Teddy on his hip glanced at Sirius and James as they glanced back, "Sirius and James agreed that it wouldn't hurt to answer a questionnaire they'd sent us, but Peter and I disagreed. We were chasing after the owl, and they were chasing after us."

Hermione turned to look at the two boys as they avoided her gaze, "What did I tell you about staying away from the press? They're just a little swarm of bugs, annoying pests." She turned and tossed the parchment away and into the fire. Remus notably relaxed once it was set aflame, turning to Teddy and grinning. "Now – who is getting rid of the feathers and who is taking the disgruntled owl to the Hospital Wing? Because I certainly am not." Harry smiled and flopped into a chair, watching them in amusement.

"I can take the feathers," Remus volunteered, James nodding along as well as Sirius and Peter grimaced at the owl. It took several minutes for the bird to be taken out of the room. As soon as the two were gone, James and Remus vanished the feathers and flopped on the couch, grinning as Harry chuckled and Hermione rolled her eyes while playing with Teddy.

"Minnie!" he cried out, getting frustrated, as she hadn't been paying attention, "Moony love - !"

"Err, Teddy! D'you know my name?" James asked, plucking the little boy out of Hermione's arms as the toddler blinked at him. "Which is easier, James or Prongs?"

"You'll either be Jams or Pongs," Harry stated, ruffling up Teddy's hair affectionately, "Choose wisely."

"Can you say James?" James questioned.

"'Ame," Teddy announced, making James grin as an owl flew in and fluttered over to Hermione. She smiled and took the letter, watching it fly away as she ripped it open and stared down at it.

_Miss Granger,_

_We are pleased to inform you that an appointment has been made for you this upcoming weekend at two in the afternoon. Please get a good night's rest if possible and drink an adequate amount of water._

_Yours,_

_Healer Haddock_

Hermione sucked in a breath and stared at the parchment, which didn't go unnoticed.

"Hey, are you alright?" Remus asked before frowning, "Did the letters start coming in again?"

"Oh, err, no," she said, smiling and crumpling up the parchment, "I just heard that a friend was in town this weekend and I'm going to visit them."

"Oh really, who?" Harry asked.

"One of the students from Durmstrang, you wouldn't know them," she said, standing before stumbling, holding her head and blinking rapidly as Remus stood and looked at her worriedly.

"Hermione?" he questioned.

"I'm – err – I'm fine," she murmured, seeing spots before her eyes, taking a few steps before her legs gave out and she was kneeling on the rug, Harry and Remus both at her sides as James stood with Teddy, looking on worriedly as Remus attempted to help her up. "I'm – not. Luna, get…Luna…." She tilted her head back and everything faded away.

* * *

**Dun-dun-duuuuun. Lol. **


	33. He Left It Dead, And With Its Head

**Got the Imagine Dragons _Night Visions _cd aww-yeah.**

* * *

_"Hey there, Granger."_

_Hermione blearily opened her eyes and blinked across the hospital bed, stretching her fingers and toes as she tried to identify the redhead lying leisurely in the hospital bed next to her. "Fred?" she croaked, looking around as she tried to raise her head up._

_"Don't move too much," he stated dully, examining his wand. "You have some sort of internal problem. That's what the Healers said, anyway." _

_"Am I…dead?"_

_"Nah, just visiting, don't worry," he grinned, sitting up and swinging his legs over the side to face her, "I am wondering why you didn't seek medical attention sooner, but – hey – then we wouldn't be chatting. It's nice that you picked me, of all people, to come see you."_

_"I picked you?" she frowned a little and looked over at him. _

_"Well, I kind of ran to the Gate like my life depended on it," he said before snorting and grinning at himself, "Wow, bad metaphor. Or a good one. Whichever. Anyway – you're currently in St. Mungo's, but everyone's waiting on you to wake up for them. You've been out for days – people tried to guess on what you had, but only you know." _

_"Can I wake up?" she questioned._

_"Well, if you do, then you won't be able to talk to me," he grinned cheekily at her, tweaking her nose and chuckling when she stuck her tongue out at him. "Merlin, I missed you – can you believe it?"_

_"Yeah, we missed you too," she smiled. _

_He grinned and pecked her forehead, hugging her tightly, "I'll see you later, Hermione – _much_ later."_

"Miss Granger…Miss Granger? Miss Granger, can you hear me?"

Hermione flicked her eyes open and winced against the blinding light, carefully shoving the heels of her palms against her eyes, giving a strange, small whimper as someone gave a sigh of relief.

"Hermione," George sighed, reaching and grabbing her arm to pull a hand away from her eye, "Hermione, you need to tell the Healer what happened."

"I – ahh – the light kind of burns," she squinted. The Healer immediately dimmed the lights, and Hermione opened her eyes and took a few deep breaths. "I – err…I was sitting and then I stood up and everything just…went wrong. My head started to hurt, I saw spots, I couldn't breathe properly, and my legs gave out."

"Is there anything that could've caused this, anything unusual?" the Healer asked.

"I – during the Battle…" she bit her lower lip, squeezing George's hand tightly. "Before, actually, I'd been captured by Bellatrix Lestrange and a group of Death Eaters. I don't know what they did, but the scar they gave me kept getting darker and darker and hurting and spreading out like a web over the year." She held out her arm, tiny little lines spreading out from the word, like frost on a windowpane.

"I'll start researching and examining a cure," the Healer declared before exiting the room.

"Hermione," George frowned, leaning closer to her, gripping her hand just as hard as he was gripping hers. "Why didn't you - ?"

"I didn't want anyone to worry about me," she muttered.

"Well, you got the exact opposite of that," George snorted with a small grin, although it didn't seem genuine. "I had to sprint to the door to get this spot, stitch in my side and everything."

"What?" she blinked back.

"Yeah, the Mediwitch said that only one of us could stay with you, and I ran like my life depended on it," he faltered and looked down at her as she gaped openly at him, "Bad metaphor, huh?"

"Or a really good one," she stated softly with a small smile.

"Now, seeing as I know you," George began, getting into 'big brother mode,' which Hermione had seen often enough, second-hand and more often first-hand. "I know that you've researched this backwards and forwards since it first popped up – apparently before school even began, according to Luna. So what is it?"

"If it is what I think it is, it's dark magic, kind of like the curse put on the Gaunt ring, only mine is working internally," she said after a moment of silence, "The blade that Bellatrix used to cut my scar must've had the magic imbedded in it."

George was silent, running his fingers over the scar before he spoke, "Couldn't it be something else?"

"It seems unlikely, but I'm hoping."

"Why, what'll happen to you if it's the curse?" he questioned.

"If it is…I won't have much longer to live."

George gaped and looked at her pleadingly before he shut his mouth and stared down at her arm. "If there isn't a cure already, I'll work on it."

"What?" she blinked, "George – "

"Hermione, you helped me get over Fred's death. If you died, I dunno who would help me or the rest of us then. We'll do anything to keep you with us, Granger."

She smiled and patted his hand, "Thank you, George."

"Don't thank me," he snorted, rolling his eyes, "Honestly, it's what family _does_." He grinned and ruffled up her hair, "When will you learn?"

* * *

"You're teaching my classes? Why – what was McGonagall thinking?"

Harry frowned at her, rolling his eyes when Hermione chuckled and grinned at him. "She was thinking that since the N.E.W.T.s and O.W.L.s were coming up, the students could use actually having a teacher present."

"Regardless of how competent that teacher is?" Ron asked with a grin.

"Hey! I led the DA!" Harry crowed.

"Mate, _Hermione_ led the DA, she just let you take the credit and think up the things to learn," Ron chuckled as Hermione grinned at her boys.

"Anyway, the students are glad because I don't assign homework," Harry grinned cheekily.

"Harry! They need that homework – I can't cover everything for the tests without it!" Hermione cried as Harry froze. "Now I'll have to take longer to go over everything so they can be prepared!"

"Err…whoops," he grinned sheepishly at her glare, "If it's anything, Dean, Seamus, Neville, Ginny and Luna are all worried about you, especially the Marauders."

Hermione sighed and leaned against her pillows. She'd been held in St. Mungo's for nearly a week and a half, not including the time she'd been asleep. So far, they'd tried several potions, but they hadn't worked. George had apparently buried himself in his workshop to try anything and everything. Harry and Ron wouldn't tell her, but she looked pale and tired, like no matter what, she couldn't sleep, and the lines on her arm had gotten thicker and had gone up a little past her elbow. It seemed that now it was being treated, it was angrier than ever, if spells or curses could _get_ angry.

"Go and tell them not to worry – I'll be fine," Hermione smiled at Harry.

Harry looked doubtfully at her before glancing to Ron, who shared the look. Hermione had always been like that – thinking of others before herself. No matter what they needed, whether it was for homework or the safety of the Wizarding World, she would put everything she had into making sure it was done. She believed that other people's problems were more important than anything she had going on. It was one of the reasons that the Weasleys and her other friends worried over her.

Ron looked to his watch and sighed, standing and slumping his shoulders as he pouted, "My break is over. I have to go back and deal with ruddy dragons again."

"You chose your job," Hermione told him, grinning when he gave her a glare before hugging her and patting her on top of the head, walking out after patting Harry on the shoulder.

"Hermione…" Harry began after a few moments, "You're going to get better, aren't you?"

Hermione blinked and looked up at him. He didn't really look as if he were eighteen anymore – he seemed eleven, worried and anxious to hear what she had to say about Nicolas Flammel. She opened her mouth, ready to tell him that she was fine, before the words died in her mouth and she curled in a little, resembling the way she did when she was eleven as well.

"I don't know anymore, Harry," she whispered.

* * *

"Miss Granger, you have visitors."

Hermione looked up and blinked when four grins greeted her. She gaped for a moment before recovering and thanking the Mediwitch, setting her book down to cross her arms over her chest and glare at them. "What the bloody hell are you doing here?"

"Checking on you, of course," Sirius said as he took a chair, rolling his eyes, "_Duh_, Kitten."

"You're supposed to be at Hogwarts, you could get in a lot of trouble," Hermione insisted.

"Well then somebody shouldn't have given us a Floo system," James stated cheekily, leaning against Sirius's chair as Peter took the next one, Remus standing and rolling his eyes at them.

"I gave you a _restricted_ Floo system," she growled.

"We Flooed from the Shack to your place and then here," Remus shrugged, sitting on the edge of her bed, "Whether you had given us a Floo system or not wouldn't have stopped us."

"We wanted to check on you," Peter agreed.

"Well, I'm fine, so go back to Hogwarts," she frowned.

Remus reached over and grabbed her arm, twisting it gently so that he could see that the lines had spread to her palm and all the way up her arm, nearing her shoulder. He frowned and looked back at her, "Are the Healers even trying?" he asked.

She sighed, dropping her arm and holding a hand over her eyes, "They're trying _everything._"

"Is anything working?" Sirius asked worriedly.

She bit her lower lip and looked to her blackening palm. "I don't think so."

"We heard George was trying to come up with something – Remus has written him a few times to help," James stated after a pause, "Sirius even went into the library."

"Did you?" Hermione brightened as Sirius slid in his seat and grimaced.

"Don't get so excited – Moony gave me a list because he was busy talking with George and Harry," Sirius muttered, glancing to the werewolf. "There was a whole lot of hand moving and Harry just staring between the two of them."

"Potions never was his strongest subject," Hermione chuckled, "Neither was George's, his was Charms, but Fred must've helped him out. Better at it than I would've expected."

"Hermione," James spoke up, looking somewhat like Harry had weeks earlier, "You're going to be alright, right?" The four boys turned to her and shared the same expression of worry, fear, and hope.

Hermione took a deep breath and forced a smile on her face, finding the courage to push the lie through, "Of course." Sirius and Peter believed it, but James and Remus shared glances. They'd seen her falter and collapse, and the marks on her arm didn't help any.

"Really boys," Hermione grinned, "I'll be perfectly fine."

* * *

"_Aah!_"

"It's reached her heart - what do we do?"

The Healer faltered, watching as Hermione gritted her teeth, tossed her head back, and clawed the sheets. The blackness had reached her chest, and during the middle of the night Hermione had felt her chest tightening, feeling like something was squeezing around her ribcage. She wouldn't be surprised if some bones were breaking. It was like having the Cruciatus curse put on her all over again.

"I've got this, I've got this, I dunno if it'll work," George said, running with Harry into the room, Harry dressed in pajama pants and a t-shirt, but George wearing jeans and a jumper. "I'm hoping."

"We'll try anything," the Healer decided, taking the glass of murky green liquid from George. "Miss Granger, can you open your mouth?"

"If I do," Hermione stated through gritted teeth, panting heavily, "It'll be to scream."

"You can inject it, where has it spread now?" George asked.

"Her heart," the Healer announced.

"_Shit_, we can't inject it there," he stated as the Healer filled a syringe with the potion. "Where's a blood vessel that'll get it to her heart?"

"_Aagh – superior vena cava!_" Hermione gasped.

"Right, it'll hit all of her problem areas," the Healer stated before taking the needle and sticking it in the appropriate area.

"C'mon, Hermione," Harry whispered worriedly, gripping her hand, ignoring the pain she was bringing him as she dug her nails into his skin, panting out apology after apology.

Hermione took a very deep, shuttering breath, everyone else in the room holding theirs, and her grip slackened.

* * *

**I'll update quickly I promise because I know how shitty I am right now.**


	34. He Went Galumphing Back

**Ever since I started using the poem _Jabberwocky_ to title my chapters, it's become eerily (or perversely in the case of chapter 22 *snort*) correct. Just on pure coincidence. Now, if you don't think that's neat, we can't be friends. *sticks tongue out***

**Also, the first bit is a flashback. Just FYI.**

* * *

_"You can inject it, where has it spread now?" George asked._

_"Her heart," the Healer announced._

_"Shit, we can't inject it there," he stated as the Healer filled a syringe with the potion. "Where's a blood vessel that'll get it to her heart?" _

_"Aagh – superior vena cava!" Hermione gasped._

_"Right, it'll hit all of her problem areas," the Healer stated before taking the needle and sticking it in the appropriate area. _

_"C'mon, Hermione," Harry whispered worriedly, gripping her hand, ignoring the pain she was bringing him as she dug her nails into his skin, panting out apology after apology._

_Hermione took a very deep, shuttering breath, everyone else in the room holding theirs, and her grip slackened._

"Hermione?"

Hermione looked up from her mug of tea and smiled as Remus blinked at her, arms full of books, gaping at her before he grinned brilliantly back at her. He set the books on her coffee table and hugged her when she set her tea on the table next to her and held her arms out.

"I didn't even realize you'd been released from Mungo's!" he grinned as she chuckled.

"Not a lot of people do, just Harry, George, a few other Weasleys, and McGonagall," she smiled, "The Healer told me to rest until after Easter holiday – rubbish idea, but whatever, I can think up lesson plans." She arched an eyebrow at him, "Do you lot often come through my fireplace when I'm not here?"

"Oh, no, Ginny had me bring these books by, she didn't have time to because of Quidditch practice, for whenever you got out of Mungo's," he shrugged, "I had nothing better to do." He tilted his head at her, "So, how's everything now?"

"Better," she said with a small smile, lifting up the baggy sleeve of her jumper, showing him her scar, where it was just a slightly darker color of her skin and raised. "No more evil arm." She took her tea back and set it in her lap, her legs in the chair with her.

"I guess I already know why you didn't tell anyone else, but don't _ever_ do that again," Remus frowned as she sheepishly took a sip of her tea and looked anywhere but at him. "Hermione, from what Harry told us, you almost died."

She pursed her lips and looked down at the liquid, "I did."

"You did what?" he blinked.

She grimaced, "I died. I came back. George's potion hit my heart not long after it stopped and it forced it to start again. Got rid of the curse, because apparently it was meant to stop only when I died, but it helped anyway. Mungo's took his potion and is trying to modify it to work before the last possible second. But don't tell the others, I don't want them to – "

"Worry, right, I know," he snorted, rolling his eyes before he grinned and stood from the couch, pecking her cheek, "I'm very glad you weren't permanently lost forever, then."

"I'm glad too," she chuckled. "I'm sure I'd never hear the end of it from Fred. He visited me, you know."

"When you died?" he questioned, sitting back down.

"Oh, no, before, when I was unconscious," she hummed, "Said I'd see him _much_ later. Damn, the bugger was right."

Remus chuckled and shook his head at her, glad to see that she was sitting there, healthy and happy, like nothing had happened in the first place.

* * *

"And so – err – the dementor will, uhh…go away when a Patronus – not even a completely err…figure-ish one – is uhh…cast."

Hermione snorted, causing Harry to squawk and blink up at her as she leaned against the railing of the staircase, "Really, Harry, you _faced_ dementors and that's what you've come up with?"

The class gave happy shouts of "Professor Granger!" while the Marauders – aside from Remus – gaped and beamed while Harry frowned at her.

"You're supposed to be resting," he insisted as she gracefully danced down the staircase.

"I'm not doing anything," she huffed, sitting behind her desk, chin in her hands as Harry blinked at her. "Well, go on, go teach," she waved him along. He glared at her and she smirked. "Have you taught them the spell?"

"Oh, err, right, the spell," he stammered. Hermione chuckled and laid her arms on her desk, mouth hidden as she watched Harry fumble his way through her class. Partway in, she flicked her wand at a chalkboard behind him and wrote down what Harry was trying to say. The class went a lot smoother after that.

"You're back!" James said excitedly once the class was over and he, Sirius and Peter practically dashed up to her desk, Remus chuckling and taking his time.

"You're alive!" Sirius bounced when she stood and hugged him tightly, James waiting for his turn.

"We thought you'd never come back," Peter stated as she moved back to her chair.

"You don't have to worry about it," Hermione promised as Harry and Remus shared glances. She smiled sweetly and leaned back in her chair, "It's nice that you all care and everything, but you four have classes to go to." They sighed and rolled their eyes but left anyway.

* * *

_"I was so worried about you."_

_"Don't worry about it – I'm fine," she murmured, cupping his face and pecking his lips. "You won't get rid of me that easily." _

_"I don't want to get rid of you at all," he muttered against her lips, weaving his fingers through her hair as she chuckled and wrapped her arms around his neck, tugging him closer and making him step between her legs, as she was sitting on something unidentified. _

_"Well I suppose that's good, then," she smiled, making him sigh, roll his eyes, and reluctantly smile back before kissing her again, cradling the back of her head. _

"Mmmn…no, no, wait, no!" Hermione sat up with a gasp, eyes wide, hair wild, kicking the sheets off from around her legs as she placed her hands over her heart, "No, no, why are you doing this to me?! Stop doing this, just stop it! This is bad, this is _extremely_ bad! I'm going to get fired, I'm going to go to Azkaban, I'm going to be an old creepy woman with seventy-eight cats! This shouldn't be happening, this _can't_ be happening." Hermione stopped her pacing and slid down the back of her door, head tilted to the ceiling while she thought. "I am _so_ screwed."

* * *

Remus angrily threw his pillow at the wall, wishing that it made more of a sound than a 'thump.' Another one of _those_ dreams again. They'd stopped when he'd been worried about her, but then they came back as soon as he knew she was alright. He wished it would go away and leave him alone.

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, still breathing heavily, his skin still hot. He took several deep breaths, trying to calm down to figure out what to do next. He could either attempt going back to sleep and chance another onslaught of dreams, or wait until everyone else was awake and act as if nothing had happened. Seeing as it was two in the morning, it would be a _long_ day.

* * *

**I just want to write them being all couple-y now but ugh I can't. :( Also I wrote about you guys on Tumblr! Delete the parentheses and copy into your URL if you're interested! BTW it was about last chapter :)**

**http():/()ava-dakedavra().()tumblr().com()/post/() 56940577357/()people-reading-the-newest-chapter()- of-were-all-mad()**


	35. And, Has Thou Slain the Jabberwock?

**I don't want to go back to school I'm going to be a junior I don't want to grow up meeehhhhh.**

**Also I can't remember if I gave Hermione's parents names yet in this story and I really don't feel like going back and checking I just realized halfway through that I needed to give them names at some point.**

* * *

"Hermione Jean Granger, _wake up!_ This is my third time coming in here and I won't be coming in again! I'll just let your cousin see you in your pajamas and that'll be that."

"What?" Hermione asked groggily, sitting up slowly and staring blankly at her mother, Sirius in the doorway and watching in amusement. It was incredibly strange to have the Marauders in her childhood home, but not unpleasant. Hermione's father talked about some show from the seventies with Sirius and Remus, leaving James, Peter and Hermione to stare blankly at one another throughout the encounter. Hermione's mother talked about recent events that they'd missed and only seemed to embarrass Hermione thoroughly when it came to her younger years, leaving the witch collapsing on any available surface and groan out "no, Mum, why, I'm their professor, don't do this to me."

Hermione's mother sighed, frowned, and settled her hands on her hips as Sirius waltzed in and plopped on her bed, playing with a button on her quilt. "Apparently, Kitten, you're having family over today."

"No, I knew that," Hermione said, pushing her feet against his back, as he was laying on them, "I don't remember you coming in two other times before."

"How late did you stay up?" she questioned as she began to straighten various things on Hermione's bookshelf, "You're only ever like this when you stay up and read."

Hermione clenched her jaw and tried not to blush. She'd been sleeping rather well, really, up until one of those blasted dreams happened again, and was left to hate herself until the early hours of the morning. Still, she wasn't about to tell that to anyone.

"It's not about your accident, is it?" Hermione's mother paused and looked to her worriedly.

"Mum, I told you, I'm fine," she smiled before frowning at Sirius, "Do you mind? I can't feel my toes anymore."

"No, I don't mind at all," he shrugged, hearing Hermione's mother scoff and walk out of the room.

"Do you need us to get him?" James asked, Remus leaning against the doorway, eating an apple and watching this encounter in amusement.

"Do I?" Hermione asked, arching an eyebrow down at the teenager lying on her legs.

"Your quilt is so comfy," he ignored her question, making James chuckle and hop up onto her bed as well, making Hermione groan and flop into her mattress as Remus made his way into her room and looked around, reading through the titles on her bookshelf as he ate.

"Off, both of you," she frowned.

"What? This might be one of the last times we'll hang out together while we're students," Sirius pouted.

"But not the last time we'll hang out together _period_," James corrected, patting Hermione's knee, giving a smile.

"No, you'll never get rid of us," Remus hummed, leaning in to look at a picture on her shelf, "Kind of feel sorry for you, actually."

"You should," she huffed, "I can't feel my legs."

"I'm not _that_ heavy, Hermione," Sirius frowned.

"Yes, but you're heavier than me," she pointed out.

"Are you calling me fat?" he glared.

"No, I'm just saying you're taller and therefore have more body mass," she said, raising up on her hands, her sheets falling down and spilling into her lap.

"So you are calling me fat!"

"I'm not calling you fat!"

"Well, isn't this sweet?" Hermione's face screwed up at the voice and she fell back on the bed, taking her pillow and shoving it over her face, probably attempting to suffocate herself as her cousin walked into her room. "Hermione and her little boyfriends all piled up in bed together."

"Christine," Hermione warned, although it was muffled through her pillow.

"Relax, I'm only teasing," she smirked, hopping up on the corner of her desk and looking over a couple of the pictures, one of which with her and Harry. She had long, straight, honey colored hair and blue eyes, wearing a pale sundress and gladiator sandals. "Who's he? He looks like him," she held up the picture frame as Hermione pushed her feet against Sirius's back, attempting to push him off, nodding towards James.

"Oh, that's Harry," Hermione said.

"You two related?"

Hermione gave a small smirk of her own and glanced between the three boys, "You could say that." She groaned and tried to roll him off, "Sirius, get the hell off! I need to get ready!"

"Yup," Christine said primly, sounding rather smug, "The family's coming over, gonna be a big bash."

"Do you honestly like your family? I mean, I never could understand why people liked their family," Sirius said.

"Get. _Off_," she insisted as James stood.

"Sirius, really," Remus hummed, crunching on his apple, smiling a little, "Do you never learn from your past experiences?"

"Obviously not, he's still doing the same crap," Hermione huffed, at the very least pulling her legs out from under him, crossing her legs and sitting up while Christine scowled. She tossed her hands in the air and looked up to the ceiling, "Yes, Christine, my pajamas consist of sweatpants and t-shirts that aren't even mine, I don't buy sets that match, I don't buy skimpy nightdresses, I just wear what's comfortable. Deal with it!"

"Not even a flannel set!" she cried out, "Not a button up or anything!"

"Well who'll see them? What's the point?" she asked, the three exchanging glances. "You always pick on me for my clothes!"

"Honey, you pick the most atrocious things!" she said as Sirius quietly slipped off of her bed and the three slipped out of the room, shutting the door behind them and glancing between one another.

"Well," Sirius hummed with a slight grin, "This should be fun."

"Hey, Missus Granger," James said as they headed down the back stairs and into the kitchen, smiling when she lifted her head and grinned.

"Did Christine judge Hermione's pajamas again?" she asked, looking through a cook book.

"Yeah – does that happen often enough?" Remus questioned.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair, "Hermione never was a girly girl. She showed more of an interest in books or her grades than makeup and hair. Although, I must admit," she smiled and plucked a photo off of the fridge, holding it out to the three to examine a younger Hermione, leaning against the foot of a bed in the girls' dorms, beaming with her hair pinned up and styled delicately, wearing a gorgeous dress. "She isn't completely lost in that area. She wrote and said that everyone else had gone downstairs just by the time she'd finished her hair and makeup and she'd been a little bit late. I would've given anything to see her at that dance – she's always been picked on, you know. The sweetest little girl in the history of the universe – I can't imagine why."

"Neither can we," Remus agreed as James sighed and nodded.

"During that little – err – dark period recently," she glanced up at the staircase, "She grew up far too fast. Hardly ever smiled anymore – I knew something was wrong. And then she went and did that little stunt in Australia and – well," she sighed, looking down at the picture in her hands, touching Hermione's face and smiling softly, "My sweet little girl got broken."

Remus glanced down at his apple, turning it over in his hands as James and Sirius exchanged glances. Her hands snapped to place the picture under a cookie jar, looking innocently back as Christine and Hermione came down the staircase, frowning – although Hermione was glaring at the back of her cousin's head, dressed in jeans and a light sweater, knowing that she'd spark quite a lot of curiosity by the scars covering her. She'd changed in her bathroom while Christine had raided her closet, attempting to put her in a light blue sundress, but Hermione had refused.

"So, who's coming today?" Hermione asked, hopping up on the raised part of the counter that doubled as a bar, facing the Marauders and twisting to look back to her mother.

"Cecilia, Lucy, Mark, Jason, Eric, Ross, Martha – oh, and Hermione, don't mention about Ben to Julia, she'll throw a fit if we bring it up."

Hermione immediately brightened, "Ben? Ben's coming?"

Christine snorted and rolled her eyes, "More like 'coming _out_.'"

"Oh please, I knew he was gay," Hermione snorted, rolling her eyes, "He told me when he was thirteen."

"You were ten!" Christine gaped, "I was fifteen, why didn't he come to me?"

"Probably because you were sucking face with Jeremy Lasner _all_ the time," Hermione grinned wickedly, squeaking and grabbing on to Remus's shoulder as her mother smacked her arm.

"Hermione Jean Granger, I don't want that talk in my kitchen," she frowned as Christine stuck her tongue out at her.

"Who's Ben?" Remus asked.

Hermione brightened, "The _best_ cousin in the entire world, that's who!"

"My idiot second-cousin," Christine scoffed.

"Whoa, what?" Sirius blinked.

"Alright, let's see," Hermione's mother pursed her lips, "How to explain this. Now, alright…Christine's mother is Cecilia, who's Andrew's…no, just forget it, too hard to explain."

Hermione laughed, grabbing a couple of grapes out of a bowl on the counter, "Ben is amazing, you're going to love him."

"Just be careful that he doesn't love you," Christine hummed, earning a dark glare from Hermione.

"That's not very nice!" she frowned.

"What? He's practically a nympho," she snorted with a smile.

"_Really_, girls!" Hermione's mother exclaimed, frowning between the two, "If you really want to talk about Ben's sexuality – "

"At least wait for me to show up," a man finished her sentence, shutting the backdoor behind him as Hermione brightened and launched herself off of the counter, hugging him tightly as he laughed and lifted her up into the air. "My God, you've gotten big!"

"My God, you've got blue hair!" she laughed as he released her, pouting as he ran a hand through his hair.

"It's turquoise," he huffed before beaming and pecking her cheek, "Missed you, Kiddo, you should've moved with me."

"Pfft, please, and miss out on these boys?" Christine smirked as Hermione turned and glared at her as Ben blinked at the additional guys in the kitchen, who grinned and waved.

"We're not related to them, are we?" he asked, tilting his head at Christine.

"Not yet," she murmured, grinning when Hermione blushed and glared at her again. "God, you've got your knickers in a twist this morning! I'm just poking fun!"

"I've been poked at my entire life, I'd take care if you at least made it pleasant for me," Hermione frowned, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, like this!" Sirius stated, snickering when he prodded Hermione's side and she jumped, scooting away from him as fast as possible, clutching her sides and glaring at him.

"That one?" Ben whispered out of the side of his mouth to his other cousin, who shook her head.

"The quiet one," she murmured back, as James was poking Hermione too, and she was trying desperately to shrink in on herself as Remus only watched on in amusement.

"Ahh – I approve," he grinned back at Christine before turning to Hermione, "Do I get introductions, you _rude_ little girl?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and swatted at James and Sirius, "This is James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and – where's Peter?"

"That is an _excellent_ question," Remus hummed, biting into his apple as Hermione snorted.

"You three are awful to him," she frowned.

"He's just…he likes his space, I guess," James shrugged.

"I like my space, you always follow me," Remus frowned.

"Yes, but when you want your space, Moony, you want to _brood_ in your space," Sirius said, clapping a hand on his shoulder and making him cough and glare at him. "It's not healthy."

"No, of course not," James agreed.

"Dreadfully awful, of course."

Ben arched an eyebrow at Hermione before he turned to Hermione's mother, "I thought Hermione was enough, you invited her friends over?"

"Oh, play nice," she replied, smiling at him when he stooped and pecked her cheek.

"Alright, Aunty Nora," he grinned before hopping up on the counter and watching her flick through different recipes.

"Besides, they're her students," she continued.

"Students?" Christine and Ben echoed before turning and blinking back at Hermione.

"Oh, I'm teaching at the boarding school I went to," Hermione smiled, "These three – well, four, if we can ever find Peter – had some special circumstances and I was 'elected' to help them through it."

"We're really her age, so we're friends anyway," Sirius shrugged as James hooked an arm around her shoulders and tugged her into his side, ruffling up her hair.

"Mmn…kay," Ben said after sharing a glance with Christine, "But you didn't have to get any training, any degree, go to any sort of college?"

"All of my training and degree was decided in my fifth year – after that I worked on it," Hermione made up with a smile.

"Although, I'm pretty sure you're the youngest professor our school has _ever_ had," Remus said, chucking the apple core into the trashcan.

"No doubt about it," Sirius said, tugging on a curl with a grin.

"Wow – our little wicked cousin, teaching kiddies all sorts of new things," Ben grinned proudly back at her. "This calls for a celebratory camp out!"

Christine groaned and Hermione cringed, even Nora wincing while the three boys glanced between one another. "Aww, come on, my camp outs weren't that bad!"

"You burned my hair!" Christine cried out, holding up her hair, as if there were still some evidence to show him.

"I spent weeks getting marshmallow out of my hair, Ben – let's not," Hermione pleaded.

As the day passed on and the Marauders, Hermione, Christine and Ben helped Nora in the kitchen, more and more people showed up. First it was Christine's parents and little siblings, the youngest girl clinging on to Hermione's leg and giggling loudly as she grinned and ruffled up her hair. Next it was a myriad of Nora or Andrew – Hermione's father – siblings or aunts or parents. Nora's mother apparently knew about Hermione's little secret and loved to make little jokes about it, making Hermione give something between a grin and a grimace.

Then it was Ben's parents, who kissed his cheeks and ruffled his hair with grins, although they brought his aunt, who looked at him darkly and sniffed as she turned her nose up.

"It's like dinner at the Weasleys all over again," James said in amusement, seated at one of the picnic tables outside, lanterns littered all over the backyard. Peter had come in through the back gate and happily exclaimed that he'd found a stream not too far away, and Hermione had even looked surprised by that.

"We all live far away – we only get together when we can, so we go all out," Ben shrugged, seated across from him, "I moved to Germany, Christine's living in France with her family, my parents went somewhere in Belgium – or did you go to the States, Mum? Anyway, point is, we're all spread out, so we don't really meet casually on the streets or anything."

"Mya, Mya, can I sit wiff yew?" Sophia, Christine's little sister, asked, tugging on her sweater sleeve. Hermione smiled and nodded, picking her up and putting her in her lap as Remus looked over and smiled back.

"You can eat off of my plate, alright?" she said, pecking the top of her head.

"Do all munchkins like you or something?" Sirius asked, on the other side of her.

"Nodda munchkin!" Sophia exclaimed, pouting over at Sirius.

"What, you have another ankle-biter somewhere?" Christine blinked.

"Yeah, she's got Teddy, Remus's son," James answered brightly.

Nora spat out her drink and coughed, Andrew's eyes widening as he patted his wife on the back. Christine gasped as she blinked, the rest of the family reacting the same way, Ben's mouth popping open before snapping back up as he cleared his throat and loosened his collar, "Can't judge, can't judge at all."

"He's my _godson_," Remus glared at James as he and Sirius grinned cheekily back, although with a slight blush on his face as Hermione patted his hair. "He's staying with some friends while I go to school."

"Oh," Nora blinked before smacking her cheek and sighing, "Hermione told me. I'm sorry. I overreacted."

He chuckled, "Its fine. I probably would've done the same. But, yeah, Teddy basically latches on to Hermione."

"No," Sophia frowned, "My Mya!"

"Of course I'm your Mya, Sophia," Hermione cooed, hugging her and kissing her head, making the little girl smile. She looked back at Remus and gave a quick grimace, "I'm just Teddy's Minnie." Thankfully, the little girl didn't hear that, as she was grabbing a French fry.

"So, Ben…what have you been up to in Germany?" Christine asked, turning to her turquoise haired cousin and giving a small smile, "Up to no good, I presume?"

"Ahh, you always can guess," he grinned while the other adults spoke, "Well, I've been travelling, trying to learn some German, made a _whole_ lotta Nazi jokes – they don't like that, by the way – and…ermm…." He fidgeted, glancing down at his glass before releasing his breath and saying loud enough that everyone could hear, "Met someone."

It was silent for a few moments before Hermione grabbed Remus's shirt and pushed him back, away from the line of fire of Aunt Julia should she attack. Everyone looked between the two as Ben looked over the table.

"I'm kind of getting married. I'd like it if you guys met him – he's in town, just in case," he said.

"What's his name?" Christine asked excitedly, ignoring the fact that Julia looked as if she would combust, "Ooh, Benji, I'm so happy for you!"

"Don't call me 'Benji,' _Christie_," he snorted before grinning, "His name is Alwin – I call him Al. Alwin is so – _dorky_."

Julia cleared her throat and stood, lifting her glass as everyone seemed to hold their breath and watch. "Benjamin," she began, "I recognize that I haven't been the most…understanding aunt. And it's not because I frown upon your lifestyle – I'm upset because I won't get any nieces and nephews that carry the family eyes. But I'm happy for you, and I hope that you can forgive me for being a right bigoted bitch." Hermione slapped her hands over Sophia's ears while Christine's brothers giggled. Julia smiled as Ben relaxed and gave a shaky grin back as she lifted her glass, "To Ben! Adopt lots of children – if you want." He laughed, running a hand through his hair and sharing a look with Hermione and Christine while the rest of his family mimicked the action, Sophia struggling with Hermione's glass.

"So…can I call him over?" Ben asked, practically bouncing in his seat.

"Go boy!" Julia ordered, sitting back down as he hopped out of his seat and ran into the house.

"Christine," Hermione blinked once everyone turned to everyone else, the Marauders sharing looks across Hermione's back, surprised at the turn of events of this evening. "Are you crying?"

"I mean," Christine sniffed, laughing and dabbing at her face with a napkin, "I know I pick on Ben – and you, for that matter – but I only do it because that's how I show affection and I just want you two to be the best you can possibly be. Blame my uncle Robert and my cousin Joseph – but I love the heck out of both of you and I only want you two to be happy and Ben's getting that and I just – I'm leaking, okay?"

Hermione laughed and reached across the table to grab her hand as Ben came jogging back, looking quite elated, "My beau's on his way! Now he'll be able to get used to the crazy!"

"Benny," Sophia said in a gasp, "Can I be yew flowa gewl?"

"Of course," he grinned before gaping and turning it into a grin, looking between Hermione and Christine excitedly, "You two can be my best girls!"

"That's not how that works," Hermione frowned.

"C'mon, Hermione!" Sirius prodded, "Have some fun!"

"Yeah, defy traditions!" James agreed. Remus chuckled and watched on with a grin.

Alwin – or, rather, Al – was greeted warmly and got to know everyone, including the Marauders. He seemed nervous and shy before he opened up, finding Sophia and Hermione absolutely adorable together.

Many of the adults began to leave later into the night, saying that they had a long drive or flight to prepare for, but the children, Christine, Ben and Al all stayed and hung out in the living room, the cousins giving stories to Al and the Marauders while Sophia toddled around behind Nora and helped her and her mother clean the kitchen.

"Did any of you keep out of trouble when you were growing up?" Remus asked as everyone tried to keep from laughing, as Ben was giving them a very harsh glare.

"Of course not, you know better," Hermione grinned as she leaned into the couch, leaning into Christine and watching as Sirius and Al began to talk motorcycles, James looking interested as Peter made a face and scooted a little bit away.

"Mya, Mya," Sophia said as she ran into the room, moving around the coffee table and stopping in front of Hermione's knees, "Will you sing me to sleep?"

Hermione immediately blushed as her parents, the younger boys and Christine's parents appeared in the doorway and grinned. The Marauders leaned closer to her, eyebrows arched and interested looks on their faces. "Ahh, why don't you call me when you get to bed and I'll sing you to sleep then?"

"We have a very long drive ahead of us, and it's already past her bed time," Lucy pointed out.

"And now that she's seen you, she won't go to sleep without a song," Mark grinned.

Hermione blushed and sighed, pulling the little girl up into her arms and leaning into the cushions further. "_Stars shining bright above you, night breezes seem to whisper 'I love you.' Birds singing in the sycamore tree, dream a little dream of me. Say 'nighty-night' and kiss me, just hold me tight and tell me you'll miss me. While I'm alone and blue as can be, dream a little, dream of me…._" She smiled when she saw that the little girl was out, standing and walking with Christine and the little group by the door out to their car.

"So, Remus, tell me something," Ben said with a smile, looking to Remus as he blinked back, "Just how long have you been in love with my cousin?"

"I hope you mean Hermione," Al blinked, "I thought he just met Christine today!"

"I – that is I – I'm not…" Remus sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he grimaced, "Is it that obvious?"

"Only a lot," he shrugged with a gleeful grin as Al shot him a frown.

"See? Just man up and talk to her!" Sirius exclaimed.

"We're not doing this – not again, you keep bugging me about this and we're not doing it," Remus glared at him.

"Doing what?" Hermione asked, making him, Ben, and Peter give startled screams as she blinked back. "On second thought, I don't want to know." She hugged Ben before heading back out of the room, "Night, boys! Nice meeting you, Al!"

"You too!" he called before he, Ben, and the other Marauders turned and looked pointedly to Remus. "So what's keeping you from asking her out?"

"She's our professor," he insisted, Al the only one donning a grimace.

"Ooh, one of our professors dated a student once…he got fired," he hummed before shaking his head, "Jailbait, and whatnot, didn't look good for the school or something, although she consented. But you lot are about the same age, right? Does your school have rules against that sort of thing?"

"Well, we wouldn't really know or want to think about it," James stated before continuing, "We've only ever had ancient professors. Professor Binns looks as if he's already kicked the bucket."

"Binns?" Al repeated with wide eyes, "Oh so you go to _that_ school!" He sucked in a breath and looked positively elated, "I knew her name was familiar!"

"Uhm…come again?" Ben blinked at his boyfriend.

"Oh, I just figured out what school they went to – I tried to get in, didn't qualify – I just wasn't magical enough, I suppose," he answered with a grin to the boys.

"Alright, Elphaba, whatever you say," he smiled, rolling his eyes. "Who's name was familiar?"

"Hermione's," he grinned, "I'd been reading up on the school a while back and thought her name sounded familiar."

"How in the world could you ever forget 'Hermione Granger'?" Ben snorted, "The name enough will make a memory."

"Let alone the person who has the name," Sirius agreed.

* * *

**This went on longer than I anticipated and it kind of sounds borderline offensive and if you are offended then I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend. I just got carried away with it. **

**Also, the song is an amazing one, and the versions I listen to most often are Michael Buble's and the Mamas and the Papas (or Mama Cass Elliot, either or), and I'll hum it all the time. Go check it out, it's called 'Dream a Little, Dream of Me' and it's beautiful!**


	36. Come to My Arms My Beamish Boy!

**So I'm into making edits and stuff and if you want something then ask me it's okay I won't judge you just _give me something to do._**

* * *

_The most notable of the knights was Sir – dear Merlin this is boring – who slayed the dragon – is that even a name – which lived at the top of the mountain above the village of – I don't think that's even a name either – and became a hero among men. He served in the battles of – why is this necessary do I even remember which subject this is for – and aided in the village of – another not-name – during their time of need. _

Remus set the book down and put his chin on the edge of his table at the library, books piled up around him, mostly hiding him from view. He folded his arms and set his mouth against them as he tried to focus on the book now leaning on a stack in front of him. He sighed and shut his eyes, frowning as he thought of all the information he had been forcing into his memory.

Hermione had returned to her teaching post as soon as Easter was over, much to the delight and chagrin of her students, as she had been giving them a lot of homework to make up for the time Harry had been teaching. The Gryffindors had won the Quidditch Cup only a week prior, reducing their fearless Quidditch captain to tears, a grin stretched across her face as her team looked to her with a few tears and grins as well. The Marauders had barely seen much of Hermione, as the other three had begun to study and Hermione was scrambling to make sure everyone knew everything they needed to in order to pass their tests, but she'd run up on the Quidditch pitch and hugged Ginny as tightly as she could, crying and beaming at the younger girl proudly before kissing James's cheek and ruffling up his hair. Parvati Patil had been seen more often, mostly arguing lightly with Sirius in the Common Room over something, and it made Ginny and James share bemused glances while Remus glanced up and wondered why Sirius's hair was a different color before sighing and going back to his book. Presently, the N.E.W.T.s were in three days. They would be leaving school in ten days. No more Common Room, no more Shrieking Shack, no more Forbidden Forrest, no more Hagrid or Dean or Seamus or Neville, no more Parvati, no more Quidditch pitch, no more Great Hall –

No more Hermione.

Remus sighed and rolled his eyes. Of course, they'd still see her often enough, but not as often as every day. She would have work, and maybe they all would have work, and they'd drift apart.

"Mister Lupin?"

Remus popped his head up and blinked back at McGonagall, who was looking at him in amusement as he tumbled out the sentence, "I wasn't sleeping, Professor, really, I swear."

She chuckled and pulled up the chair across from him, moving a few books to be able to see him as he blinked back. She clasped her hands and stared at him for a few moments before releasing her hands and simply stating, "You seem to be stressed."

"Oh, nah, just one of the biggest tests I'll ever take – not stressed at all," he shrugged, grinning lightly when she sighed and shook her head slightly at him. McGonagall always was one of Remus's favorite professors, and he exclaimed loudly one night in the Common Room that 'holy _shit_, my dad is friends with McGonagall!' and thus somehow sparking her new nickname. She was somewhat like a stern older aunt who occasionally had a soft spot for him, and he didn't mind. A laidback McGonagall was one of the signs of the upcoming apocalypse.

"I was referring to something else," she smiled lightly, "Although, yes, the N.E.W.T.s are stressful. What are you planning to do after you graduate Hogwarts?"

Remus blinked, surprised by the question before grimacing, rubbing the back of his neck, "Erm, well, I don't know. I thought I'd just try to grab whatever job will take me – I thought about working with George Weasley, see if he would be alright with me."

McGonagall blinked before frowning, "Are you still worried about prejudice?"

"I have good reason to be, don't I?" he pursed his lips, flicking at his quill, "Hermione said that a lot of werewolves were on the other side during the Second War. People might not be all that open to me."

"Firstly – prejudice is still being fought today. I believe that a bill against discrimination of werewolves was passed only a few months ago. Secondly – do you often call Miss Granger by her first name?"

"Err – yeah," he grinned lightly, "But so do the rest of the seventh years. I can't take all of the blame."

McGonagall hummed and they were silent for a few moments before she leaned forward, clasped her hands again, and frowned at him, "Mister Lupin, as Mister Black has so fondly reminded everyone, I am getting old."

"Oh, don't mind Sirius, Professor, he's just a – "

"I wasn't finished," she arched her eyebrows and he was silence before she continued, "Currently, I am the Head of Gryffindor House, Transfiguration professor, and headmistress of Hogwarts. I believe that I may have too much on my plate, so to speak. That is why, Mister Lupin, I am currently confronting you about becoming next year's Transfiguration professor and Head of Gryffindor House."

Remus's jaw dropped and he gaped at her. This must be Sirius pulling some sort of joke. Polyjuice potion, surely. This couldn't be real.

"P-pardon?" he stammered.

"I will allow you and Misters Black, Potter and Pettigrew to reside in the Shrieking Shack, regardless of your answer, for however long you four wish," she stated, "Technically, it isn't on school grounds, and Heaven knows how you four meander about Hogwarts anyway – it would just keep you on a close watch in case of any pranks happen in my halls – and I know that Miss Granger would surely miss your company." She gave a small smile and arched an eyebrow, "Well? Does my offer sound appealing at all?"

"I – uh – yes. Hell yes. I mean, sorry, yeah, yeah, I'll take it," Remus began to grin madly as she smiled a little bit wider before he blinked, "Uhh, just one thing."

She blinked back, "Yes?"

He gave a lopsided grin, "Can we not tell Hermione? I want to surprise her."

She chuckled before nodding, "I suppose." And with that, McGonagall stood from her seat, pushed the chair back under the table, and nodded to him, "Mister Lupin."

* * *

**I'm sorry it's short and I'm sorry it skipped like y'know _months_ but I wanted another update and I'll work on the next one soon.**


	37. O Frabjous Day! Callooh! Callay!

**So, how many girls paint their nails regularly and then go all out with them? Like designs, or anything? I've found several websites that give you tips and ideas and tutorials and I don't have all the time in the world to figure out how to do these (seriously, I just did a gradient one that took seven tries. SEVEN. Idk how many hours that was.) Anyway, would any of you be interesting to try some of these out (or tell me your favorites) and some dos-and-don'ts on them? I'd appreciate it, and I'll write you a oneshot for payment!**

**Also, just a heads-up – when the poem ends, the story won't end. I'll just have to find more quotes, that's all. **

* * *

"Okay, so…" Hermione opened her mouth before a laugh escaped, looking over at the kids that had been sixth years just last year, leaning against her desk and biting her thumb nail as she looked over at them, some with scars and others with aged eyes, but smiling back at her. "I just…Merlin, uhm…I – I don't have really anything else to teach or say or…anything. Well, uhm…it was an honor teaching you, truly, and I expect great things from you, whether or not those things are large or small, I expect them to be great. No matter how much hell anyone or anything puts you through, just remember that you can push through it, and I have the utmost faith in you. Remember to work hard but play harder and always remember to love the ones that love you. The biggest defense against anything dark is the brightness that you create. The Wizarding World isn't perfect and probably never will be, but just remember that everyone else is trying just like you are." She gave a soft smile, leaning against her desk, tears filling up her eyes as her heart tugged in her chest, glancing at the clock before smiling back at everyone. "I'm so very proud of all of you." The bell rang and a tear spilled over as she wrapped her arms around herself, "Class dismissed." Everyone stood and quietly began to pack up, walking out of the hall, Remus being called out by McGonagall as James, Sirius and Peter walked up to Hermione.

Sirius hugged her first, smiling at her and ruffling up her hair, "You're our favorite professor, I hope you know that."

James kissed the top of her head, "One of the best we've ever had."

"We'll certainly miss having you as a professor," Peter agreed.

"Thanks boys," she sniffed against Sirius's chest before pulling away and pushing him back, wiping at her eyes, "Go, go, you're going to be late for you next class!" She smiled as they grinned, walking out of the classroom as the other seventh years slipped in, James pecking Luna's cheek as he passed her before she took her seat. Ginny's eyes were puffy and her nose was red as she walked up to Hermione, arms outstretched, cheeks shiny. Hermione gathered the girl into her arms and hugged her tightly, surprised when Luna hugged her and Ginny as well, then Dean, then Seamus, then Neville, Blaise and a begrudging Draco.

"This is it," Neville stated, "This is today's class. This is all we're doing."

Hermione laughed, squished between him, Ginny, Luna and Dean, "Fine by me."

* * *

"Hermione? Is everything alright?" Remus asked worriedly, as she was standing on the train platform and biting her lip, watching as students boarded the train. She hadn't looked at any of them all day, and it was beginning to make everyone worry. She'd hugged Neville, Dean and Seamus tightly and told them all to behave, and shook hands with Draco and Blaise, who promised to write, and Ginny had hugged her and refused to let go for at least two hours, which caused a funny sight that made many laugh as Hermione walked with Ginny hugging her and following.

"Everything's fi-ine," her voice cracked and she slapped her hands over her mouth, tears spilling out as the Marauders blinked back at her.

"Are they really?" Luna asked, rubbing her back.

"N-oh," she hiccupped, wiping her face as more tears came, "I – I can't believe you're a-all leav-ing and I'm going to be left all al-one and I'll never get to see you all again."

James, Sirius and Peter exchanged glances with Remus, who was smiling a little before he tugged her into his arms and hugged her as she sniffed and tried to gain control of herself, "You won't be alone, Hermione. I'm going to be teaching next year."

She pulled away just enough to blink up at him, hands pressed against his chest, "You're what?"

He grinned wider, "I'm teaching next year and we're all staying in the Shrieking Shack. We're just going to the Burrow tonight to celebrate graduating."

"So you're staying?" she brightened considerably, a bright smile on her face, her eyes lighting up as well.

He chuckled, "We're staying."

She grinned before frowning and pushing him away, "You prat! You didn't tell me! I've been moping around for a week!"

He laughed and grabbed her arm, pulling her into him for him to hug again. Sirius leaned in as well, James and Luna hugging them as Peter shifted uncomfortably. Ginny saw the group hugging and ran forward, nearly toppling them all over when Neville, Dean and Seamus tugged Parvati in with them.

* * *

"Oy, oy, no, don't even," Hermione grimaced as she was lifted off her feet, grip tightening on the arm around her waist, making a strange squeaking sound while George laughed and tightening his grip.

"Hey! You survived a year of teaching! You deserve to celebrate!" he insisted as he somehow slung her up in his arms, making her 'eek!' and grip him tighter.

"And you taught _us_, no less," Ginny grinned, Harry's arm slung around her shoulders, "At _least_ eat some cake."

Hermione, however, was not listening, and was gripping George's shirt tightly and squeaking out "put me down, put me down, put me down, eeeehhh." George chuckled and set her down, patting the top of her head as she shook a little.

"Minnie, Minnie!" Teddy cried out with a massive grin, reaching for her from Remus's arms, making her smile and kiss the little boy's cheeks.

"Hi, Teddy," Hermione smiled as Remus handed him over to her, hugging the little boy tightly, "I missed you."

"Miss you," he agreed, snuggling into her as she smiled a little wider and sat down on the loveseat, curling knees up and around the little boy.

Sirius flopped into an armchair, staring up at the ceiling as Remus sat next to Hermione and grinned as he tugged lightly on Teddy's hair. "I just realize," Sirius stated, "I don't know what to do."

"Well, what did you want to do before?" Ginny questioned.

He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, "I wanted to be an Auror and help with the War. But there's no War to help _with_."

"So? Become an Auror anyway," Harry shrugged.

"I didn't want to be an Auror to be an Auror, I wanted to be an Auror to _help_," he groaned.

"You could work with the Department of Mysteries," Luna stated quietly, "They do all sorts of exciting, secretive things."

Sirius thought about this, "I dunno. I don't know if I couldn't talk about some of that stuff."

"Quidditch?" Ginny asked.

He frowned, "I dunno."

"Go into work with me," George shrugged, "I need another hand in the shop and two heads is better than one."

"You could make that four," Harry grinned as Hermione, Remus, James and Sirius looked at him as if he'd lost his mind. Ginny stifled her giggles and patted his shoulder.

"Harry, dear, Remus is going to be the new Transfiguration teacher and James has already said before during Christmas that he was going after a Quidditch career," Ginny whispered.

Harry blinked before pursing his lips and turning to Remus, "You're going to be the Transfiguration professor?"

"And Head of Gryffindor House," he added with a smile.

"Congratulations, you have more work than I do," Hermione grinned as Teddy played with her hair, "I just have to do my own work. You've got to keep the Gryffindor House in line."

"Oh, right, like you'd be mean enough to make me go through that all by myself," he snorted back.

"Well, I might be – oh, Teddy, what'd you do to my hair?" Hermione stopped, grimacing at a horrible knot, handing the little boy to Remus as she attempted to weave through it, only making it worse.

"I sowwy," Teddy told her, rather guiltily.

"No, no, Teddy, it's not your fault my hair is troublesome," Hermione reassured him with a sigh, taking out her wand and weaving through it by each individual strand. "Sometimes I think about chopping it all off."

"Don't you dare," Remus told her with a frown, making her blink back at him.

"It's fun, Kitten," Sirius grinned, passing and giving her hair a tug, making her glare back at him as he moved to the kitchen and got an apple, handing Teddy a juice box as he moved back to his seat. "It just kind of goes everywhere."

"It's unique," Luna stated.

"It's a pain in my neck!" Hermione huffed, finally ridding her hair of the knot, "You only like it because _you_ don't have to deal with it."

Luna wordlessly pulled out her wand, waving it and having Hermione's hair straighten while hers seemed to come to life. The brunette gasped and gaped, clutching at her hair and blinking as Luna and James both giddily played with her new, curly blonde strands.

"What'd you do?" Hermione asked, feeling weird. Her hair was longer when it was straightened and she did not like it that long.

"My hand's stuck," James blinked as Luna stuck her tongue out and attempted to free him.

"Luna, what'd you do?" Hermione asked again, her voice getting a little bit higher in pitch.

"It's temporary," Luna stated, giving a sharp tug, freeing James's hand. "I have always wanted to see what it was like having your hair."

"Why, do you miss your hair?" Remus asked cheekily.

She bit the inside of her cheek, refusing to answer him as she ran her fingers through her hair, taking deep breaths as everyone seemed to watch her in amusement. "I'm fine. I'm okay. I'm alright." She slowly exhaled, shutting her eyes before giving a whimper and dropping her head, running her hands down her face. "I miss my hair."

* * *

"Hey, look, it's starting to curl again," Sirius said in amusement as Hermione huddled on their couch, Luna prodding at her hair with her wand, her blonde hair long since straightened, but Hermione's remaining the same as well. Hermione had offered Luna a slumber party, as well as Ginny, but Ginny had grimaced and shifted her feet and Hermione had sighed and told her to go and be with Harry.

"Perhaps it's hibernating," James murmured. He chuckled when Hermione threw a pillow at him, pouting, tears pooling in her eyes. As much as she hated her hair, it was familiar and comforting, and if she ever did anything with it, then it was her conscious decision to do it. She'd never even wanted it straightened in the first place, and the idea of perpetually straightened hair was frightening her.

"It still looks nice," Peter offered.

"I think I can figure it out," Luna stated from atop the back cushion of the boys' couch, holding up pieces of Hermione's hair and weaving her wand through. "This is what I get for making up hair spells, isn't it?"

"Yup," James answered while Hermione stayed silent, staring at a couple of books on the coffee table. "Hermione?"

"Are you going to be okay?" Sirius finished.

Hermione hid her face, bringing her knees up to hide her further while her new hair fell around her, "No!" Luna slipped down next to her and hugged her, rubbing her back while James patted her shoulder, Sirius grimacing and sliding away a little.

Remus came out of his room and blinked before moving and kneeling in front of her, trying to look up at her face. "Hermione?"

"Mm?" she muttered.

"Your bangs are curling," he stated, making her blink and look at the front of her hair, sighing in relief when her hair began to twist and curl. He chuckled and stood, pecking the top of her head as more and more of her hair began to curl. She blushed before sticking her tongue out at him, making him laugh and move to an armchair. "I told you that you'd miss your hair."

"Shut up," she grumbled, leaning into Luna as the boys laughed again.

* * *

**Has anyone heard of Welcome to Night Vale because it's a creepy/weird/cool/cute/sad podcast that's FREE and it's like a radio show go find it and tell me your thoughts and feelings on it.**

**Also, I'm really glad that we don't have a set description for Cecil. That's what makes it fun. (I have no fucking idea where the tentacles and the third/fourth/sixth/eighth eyes come from though it creeps the shit out of me) (moving tattoos are cool though that's one of my ideas for the wizarding world)**


	38. He Chortled in His Joy

***gathers all reviewers into a large hug* *squeezes tightly* *arms are longer than originally because they had to stretch to reach all of you* *always and forever known as Noodle Arms***

**3**

* * *

"Oh, okay, I just have to read over these three hundred pages, sign and initial here and there, sell my soul and give it some of my blood," Remus hummed from his couch, hearing her snort as she sat in the armchair away from him, watching him in amusement. He'd had about a month before all of the papers and documents and files had flown in, just as they had for Hermione. However, Hermione didn't have to go through it again, as it seemed to be only for new teachers. "That doesn't sound too bad." He dropped the smile and groaned, flopping back against the couch, shoving the heels of his palms into his eyes. "I hate paperwork."

Hermione chuckled and moved to sit next to him, dividing the stack with her wand and flicking through each one to find where he had to sign. "I'll help you. We should get all of this done by tonight. However, your hand will hurt." She flicked a few papers into his direction, "Better start signing."

Remus sighed, pulling a thick book into his lap and arching his knees to bring it up, and began to sign away. James, Sirius and Peter were meeting Luna's father that night – well, meeting him again – and would be staying at the Weasley's overnight before heading back to the Whomping Willow, as they were afraid they'd get sucked into the paperwork madness as well.

"There are a few I don't recognize, but that must be because of you being Head of House," Hermione stated, setting them aside before flicking through again, sending paper after paper into his grasp. "Sorry, but you'll have to read those. Haven't seen the selling your soul bit yet, though."

"Wonder how much I'd get for my soul," he hummed dully, "It must be terribly expensive, you don't hear of people buying souls too often anymore."

"Arms and legs, sure, but never souls," she smiled, making Remus grin back.

"I wonder what you'd _do_ with a soul," he said thoughtfully.

"I'd basically put them to work, have them look things up for me, I suppose," she said after a moment.

"That's it?" he asked curiously.

"It'd give me more free time if I had souls to look things up for me," she pointed out. "I'd probably end up feeling bad and letting it go after a while."

"I suppose you'd have to be pretty immoral to buy someone's soul," Remus suggested, "And pretty fucked up to actually sell your soul."

"Such awful language from a teacher," Hermione smirked.

"Hey, I've heard that and things ten times worse from you," he pointed out, making her blush a little and twist a curl on her finger. "Besides – it's not like either of us is a student." Remus blinked – it was strange, he'd always been a student for as long as he could remember. He shook his head and continued signing, while Hermione's blush got darker, and she continued to flick things his way.

"I haven't been a student for two years."

"Two yea – oh," he caught himself, grimacing when he realized he'd glanced at her scars, "Sorry, I – "

"It's fine," she gave a soft smile, "I want to forget anyway. At least one of us is."

"Have things not gotten any better?" he questioned, turning away from his paperwork entirely, looking at her worriedly.

"As soon as I seem to forget, something happens and I'm forced to remember – the letters, my scar, it's always something," she sighed before shaking her head, "Keep signing, or we'll never get done. I can't forge your signature."

"Thanks, Hermione," he said before she looked over at him curiously, "For – for everything. This and everything over the past year. Thanks."

She gave a wide grin and shook her head, "You don't need to thank me, Remus."

He opened his mouth to tell her that yes, he did need to thank her, she was that important to him, and hey, seeing that neither was students anymore, if maybe she would be willing for him to see if her mouth tasted as good as it did in his dreams, before he blushed, shut his mouth, and continued to sign.

She left at around two in the morning, the two talking while he continued to get a cramp in his hand, and she left with a yawn cutting through her good-bye, and he groaned as he plummeted into his couch, frowning at a pillow before he shifted up to grab at what he thought was the Head of House paperwork, sitting up to shift through it dully, trying to find the line to sign so he could go to bed, before he paused when he caught a word. He blinked and looked again, thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him.

_As a teacher, it is your duty to protect the students at all costs; of course, as a werewolf, you cannot help but to transform during the full moon. This is why we recommend leaving school campus the night of the full moon, and taking an adequate amount of Wolfsbane potion, and refraining from allowing yourself to get too agitated at your students. Furthermore, it is important to _–

Remus stopped reading and crumpled it up, growling – and it sounded startlingly feral – and throwing it forcefully into the kitchen, hearing something fall and break, but he couldn't seem to care. He shut his eyes and lowered into the couch, gripping at his hair and trying to calm down. He forgot. He fucking forgot what he was. What he turned into every month. How could he have forgot? Was he honestly that stupid?

_"You know, don't you?" he asked rather loudly._

_Hermione finally smiled and nodded before continuing on. _

_"You know!" Remus said as he followed after her, "How did you – what the – how the – "_

_"Yes, I know, and yes, I'm fine with it," Hermione said, smiling up at him before continuing down the tunnel and leaving them blinking after her._

Remus opened his eyes and blinked. She always knew and she was always fine with it. That's how he forgot. She treated him like a normal person, treated him like how he thought everyone would treat him if they didn't know. He hadn't told his friends because he wanted that. She just always knew and still treated him like that. He shook his head again and smiled, sitting up and sighing, looking up at the ceiling, "I guess I wanted to forget too. I'm glad one of us doesn't."

* * *

"_No_," she insisted, hands pressed on her desk, glaring at the couple of redheads.

"But Hermione!" Percy exclaimed, George hiding behind him.

"I will not make a speech at the ruddy ball! I hated that last year – I got so smashed!" Hermione argued, pointing at him with a glare, "I don't care if you _are_ the Minister's assistant, Percy – you can tell Kingsley to take that idea and shove it!"

"Hermione!" Percy gasped as George grinned, just a little.

"Come on – think of all of the house elves you could help," George tempted.

"Oh please, I tried that for four years – they don't want my help," Hermione pouted angrily.

"Fine, let's try this then – if you don't write the speech, then I'll tell Lupin your little secret," George grinned as all of the color left her face and she sat back down in her chair, Percy blinking at the change in this argument.

"You wouldn't," she frowned.

"Oh? Do you really want to test it?" he grinned rather evilly before handing a roll of parchment and a quill to her, "Remember, you've got two months!" He walked out of her office, Percy scrambling after him, as she was reaching for a letter opener to fling after them.

* * *

**I got really pissed off when this wouldn't work with me halfway through, okay? Just thought you should know.**


	39. How Do You Know I'm Mad' Said Alice

**We have only one apple tree in our backyard but that thing has like fifty apples per branch. It's bending by the sheer weight of it. We got two plastic shopping bags' worth, and made an apple pie (oh my god, so good), apple turnovers, baked apples, and applesauce. We still have apples left over. And I think something is also attempting to eat me. Nnyyaaaahg. In any case – happy un/official autumn, everyone! Eat enough pie of your choice to make Dean Winchester envy you!**

* * *

"Please, Sirius? Remus? Peter?" she was pouting, and Remus was sinking lower and lower in her armchair, trying to escape her pleading gaze. She'd complained and griped about the Ball and Percy and especially George for the two months she was given to write her speech, and now the night had finally come, with Fleur dropping off a tan bag, along with the threat that if she wasn't ready by the time she, Luna and George popped over, she was going to get an earful. Hermione had been begging the three available Marauders to go with her, as James was going with Luna, but nobody was budging. Remus thought about it several times, but he remembered how boring she and everyone else had said it'd been last year and thought against it.

"Sorry, Kitten, I have a hot date," Sirius grinned.

"You know, just heating up the fruit isn't going to cut it," Hermione responded drily, making him blink as Remus gave a small laugh.

"I'm not too good in crowds, Hermione, sorry," Peter apologized.

Remus blushed and fidgeted a little as she turned pleadingly to him, "Really, Hermione, you don't want me going with you."

Hermione groaned, moving to her bathroom to change and fix her hair and makeup, "I feel like my lungs are going to drop into my stomach at any second, I'm so bloody nervous."

"Well if your speech is a flop that should provide enough entertainment!" Sirius called before the bathroom door could shut.

"Careful, you don't want a repeat of last year when you have a 'hot date,'" Hermione warned, Peter and Remus chuckling as Sirius whirled around to glare at her.

"Sirius, do you really have a date tonight?" Peter questioned.

"Erm – yeah," Sirius grimaced, grabbing his wand and fidgeting with it for a moment before pocketing it. "Tell me if she gets drunk again, will you?" He grinned and turned to the fireplace, Peter sighing and standing as well.

"What, do you have a date too?" Remus blinked.

"No – I have a job interview to prepare for tomorrow," Peter explained.

"That's great, Peter – what's the job?" Remus asked with a smile.

He pursed his lips, "Well, I don't know yet. It's for Gringotts – I'll just try for anything they'll give me. My luck, I'll be a substitute for a goblin or something."

Remus chuckled and waved him off as he left as well, sighing and shutting his eyes in the quiet before the bathroom door opened and Hermione appeared above him, looking extremely nervous, even though she was upside down.

"Are you _sure_ you can't come?" she asked.

"Why are you nervous?" he asked with a grin, looking up at her, glad to see that she hadn't put enough makeup on to change her appearance. "Didn't you save the Wizarding World?"

"That's different! That was spells and wandwork and _logic_. Now, I have to actually talk and everyone's going to be staring at me and – oh my Merlin, this dress, everyone's going to see my scars and I'm going to get these sympathetic pats and 'oh you poor dear's and I'm going to end up getting smashed again, I just know it."

"Inhale," Remus prompted, turning in his seat with a grin before it promptly slid off of his face as he blinked at her. It was sleeveless, with a form-fitting bodice, and her skirt ended at her knees, although it had plenty of layered, gossamer fabric to give it a considerable amount of poof, a white color, while the bodice was a deep blue.

"Remus?" she asked, her voice rising higher in pitch, twirling on a wayward curl slipping out of her up-do. "Exhale."

He did as he was asked; blinking at her several more times before he opened and promptly shut his mouth, looking back up at her as she looked at him worriedly. "Hermione, if anyone is looking solely at your scars, they have several mental disorders."

She blinked back at him, frowning a little as she lifted a foot to put a heel on, "What does that mean?"

He gave a small smile, "It means you look bloody brilliant, and you'll do fine with your speech, and I'll be here to try to make sure you're not too hammered to walk when you get back."

She blushed before smiling, putting the other shoe on, "Will you really be here when I get back?"

"Are you kidding?" he asked incredulously, and Hermione thought for a horrid moment that he was going to laugh at her, but he grinned and leaned against the back of the armchair with his arms, "You have your own personal library, _and_ I get to be entertained by your drunken state when you get back? I'm not going anywhere." He chuckled when she frowned and stuck her tongue out at him before reaching and hugging him from where he sat.

"Thank you, Remus," she said, smiling at him, "I really do appreciate it."

He smiled back, "No problem. Now, go surprise Fleur that you're ready before she came to get you. And give me drunken details on her disappointed expression when you get back."

She snorted and rolled her eyes, moving to the fireplace, "Honestly, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you four only liked me when I got drunk."

"Well, when you look like that…" he grinned innocently back at her as she turned and blinked. "What?"

She snorted, hoping desperately that she wasn't blushing, "Don't expect anything from tonight, Mister Lupin."

He smirked back, "Wouldn't dream of it, Miss Granger." And with that, Hermione went through the fireplace, leaving Remus to decide if they'd just flirted for thirty minutes before he went to her bookshelf and took a couple of books out, moving to the couch to read until her drunken return.

* * *

"Nice speech, Hermione, did you work hard on it?" Dean Thomas asked with a slight smirk, Seamus by his side and chuckling softly. Hermione gave a slight grimace, seeing as she'd stolen parts of the speech from various Muggle movies, including _the Breakfast Club _and a few Sandra Bullock movies, with a little bit of her own thoughts thrown in, and nearly every Muggleborn or Halfblood had grinned or snickered and these parts in her speech. The rest of the group sat in quiet confusion or caught in an unbreakable state of awe at the words spilling from her mouth.

"I got busy," she hissed at them, huffing when they chuckled back. "This is going to go on all night, isn't it?"

"Oh yeah," Dean grinned as they passed, making her sigh and snag a glass from a passing waiter.

"Excuse me, but what's in this?" she asked politely, having the young, gangly man turn and blink at her before blushing brilliantly.

"Oh, uhm, Firewhiskey and – "

"Perfect," she decided, taking a sip of the drink as the waiter blinked back at her, "Thank you, and I have no doubt I'll be seeing you and your companions as the night progresses. Have a very nice night."

"Oh, uhm, y-you too, Miss Granger," he blinked back. He couldn't _wait_ to tell his cousins that _the _Hermione Granger had interacted with him. And they said taking the waiter job for the Ball was stupid.

* * *

Remus didn't even look up from his book, giving a small grin when he heard the fire announce that someone had made it into her flat. "Are you drunk?" he called out, folding the corner of the page he was on.

There was a slight humming, and he looked up to see that Hermione was dropping her heels and stretching her arms above her head, eyes shut and a small smile on her face, "Yeah, little bit."

He set the book aside as she made her way over to him, sitting on the cushion next to him and sighing as she pulled her feet up next to her, her hair beginning to slip out of its hold. "How did it go?" he asked, "How was the speech?"

"Oh, the speech? Pfft, it was so lame," she answered, working through her hair with a smile, "I stole half of it from movies."

"Is that why _The Breakfast Club_ was out?" he asked with a grin.

"Perhaps," she stated slowly before shaking her head, "But people still pointed out my scars."

He looked worriedly at her, "How'd that go?"

She snorted, rolling her eyes and giving a small grin, "Honestly, I'm fairly sure I know I have scars. At one point, before I left, I looked at my arm, blinked, and said 'when in the _hell_ did those get there!'" Remus laughed as she covered her mouth with her hand, trying not to laugh as well, "The sad thing is, it was the Head of the Wizengamot."

"_No_," his eyes widened and his grin did too, but Hermione was nodding and grinning along.

"She was a horrid toad – only did it because paparazzi were there and she wanted to seem friendly, which she isn't, don't let her fool you," she hummed, slumping into his side, "I'm pretty sure the papers are going to turn me out to be a huge bitch."

"Nah, anyone who thinks that of you is demented," he decided, playing with her curls as she snorted and looked up at him in amusement.

"You thought I was a twat," she pointed out.

"I was misguided – you're certainly not a twat," he smiled before arching an eyebrow when she sighed and leaned further into his grasp, "Do I need to spend the night?"

Hermione's voice changed, and he supposed that the alcohol had finally taken control of Hermione's brain. "Oh, definitely." Remus blinked, unable to describe how the words had come out, but it made his skin feel tingly, and her hands moved slowly up into his hair.

"Erm…are you okay?" he asked with a small smile before his breathing hitched as she glided her nose along his neck. "Whoa…uh, n-not okay then?"

"Better than okay," she murmured, and Remus had trouble breathing when he felt something warm and soft press against his neck, feeling when she hummed before her lips parted and something warm and wet met his skin.

"H-how drunk are you?" He was surprised at how he was still able to speak, let alone think properly.

"Enough," she said before she went right back to kissing his neck, running her fingers through his hair.

He released a scattered huff of air, taking an eternity before he took his slightly shaky hands to pull hers from his hair and pull away to look at her as she gave him a pout. He gave a small smile and held her wrists in one hand while he ran the other through his hair, trying to get enough oxygen to his brain in order to think thoughts beyond leaning in and doing a proper job of things.

"What does 'enough' mean?" he questioned.

"Enough to make me finally kiss you," she gave a small huff, "Which you interrupted, by the way."

"I'm terribly sorry," he was grinning like a nutter, he knew, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. "What do you mean by 'finally'?"

"Oh, I've been thinking about it for months," she sighed, frowning at the memory, "Ever since we fell asleep together on my couch."

"Really?" he brightened, feeling like this was way too good to be true, but also feeling far too happy to think about any negativity to this.

"But you were a student and I felt like such a creep for the rest of the year," she winced, "I imagine in the morning I'll hate myself for this, so if you'd just let me finish what I started – you have a delicious little red mark on your neck right now and I'd quite like to make it permanent for a while."

"I'll tell you what," he smiled back, making her blink, "You sober up, and I'll ask you on a date."

She arched an eyebrow back at him, "Why can't we do both?"

"Because, little Miss Granger," he tapped her nose with a grin, still holding her wrists, "If you keep doing what you did, then I can't guarantee that _you_ won't have some marks on your neck as well. And I have a feeling you'll be _extremely_ disoriented in the morning. You'll probably think you snogged some poor, confused waiter at the Ball."

Hermione stuck her tongue out at him, and he laughed and leaned forward to kiss her cheek, pulling her up from the couch and leading her to her room. "You're so incredibly no fun," she pouted childishly, padding barefoot to her room, turning and frowning up at him at her doorway.

"I know, but you did say not to expect anything before you left," he pointed out.

"Did you expect any of this?" she gave a small smile.

"Honestly? Hell no," he grinned before leaning and pecking the side of her neck, smirking when she sighed as he pulled away, "However, if you keep standing here, I might start expecting something. Go change, and go to sleep. I'll leave a potion for you on the counter in the morning."

She gave another pout before turning and shutting her bedroom door, leaving Remus to grin brightly at nothing in particular.

* * *

**I'll write the next part later. I'm tired and I want the next chapter to be really good, so goodnight! And I hoped this lived up to your expectations! (Holy shit when did it become two in the morning I was _not_ working on this that long)**


	40. You Must Be' Said the Cat

**I'm not the only one who belts Disney songs while driving, right? No? Just me? Oookay….**

**…**

**WHAT I'D GIIIIVE**

**WHAT I'D DAAARE**

**JUST TO LIVE**

**ONE**

**DAY**

**OUT**

**theeEEERRREEEEEE**

**OOOOUT THERE AMONG THE MILLERS AND THE WEAVERS AND THEIR WIVES**

**THROUGH THE ROOFS AND GABLES I CAN SEEE THEEMMM**

* * *

Hermione groaned loudly, feeling a pounding in her skull, and a dull throbbing everywhere else. She'd changed, and had thankfully hung up the gorgeous dress, and was now wearing a baggy t-shirt (it might've been the one the Marauders had been circulating, although she had no idea how she came into possession of it if it _was_ that shirt) and some shorts, and was stuffing her head into the pillow to stop the world from tilting on its side and spilling her out of bed. Even though it seemed to be only an annual thing, she needed to desperately stop drinking.

"Potion…" she murmured to herself, eyes still clenched tightly shut, massaging her temples. "But where…?" Something in her told her to check the kitchen counter, so she groaned, sat up, and promptly returned to her mattress on her back. She took a few moments, staring at the ceiling until it stopped spinning, and took a few shaky steps towards the door, taking a deep breath to open the door, get down the steps, and to the kitchen without tripping over her own feet.

She successfully made it down the steps, blinking when she saw Remus, sprawled out on her couch, fast asleep. She gave a soft smile – whatever she'd done last night hadn't been bad enough to scare him away. She grabbed the potion and took a swig before coughing, wincing when Remus stretched and turned to look at her before giving a small smile.

"Mornin'," he muttered as he stretched before turning and lying on his stomach, facing her and giving a small grin, "How do you feel?"

"Morning," she coughed one final time before running a hand through her hair, feeling her head-and-general-area-ache disappear. "Uhm…right now, just curious as to what I did last night. Was it too embarrassing?"

"Well…" he began slowly, "That depends."

She fidgeted and tapped her nails on the counter, "On?"

He tilted his head and gave a lopsided grin, "You've fancied me for months?"

Hermione's whole world came crashing down around her, lying in shambles at her feet, and she felt the air leave her lungs and the blood rushing to her face, "Oh my God. O-oh my God, I didn't."

"Well, that was brought to light after you tried to give me a hickey," he hummed, smiling a little when she slid down the counter and curled up in her kitchen floor, chanting out 'oh my God, oh my God, no, please no.' He was still extremely elated, and had tried very hard not to yell "YES" last night while she slept, but he found it difficult. Still, he knew that doing this to her was rather mean, but her reaction was kind of adorable.

"Remus, I am so – oh my God – so sorry, I never should've – dear God, I can't believe I – " she had her face in her hands, her words muffled, and she was currently contemplating if she could angle her wand at herself properly or if she would need a steak knife to kill herself to get rid of this embarrassment.

Remus kneeled down in front of her, taking her hands and pulling them away gently to grin at her, "Do you want to go out?"

She blinked back at him, mouth opening and no sound coming out before she promptly asked "What?"

"Do you want to go out. On a date. With me?" he asked, his grin getting wider at the obvious confusion.

"But…last night…I…what?" she repeated, blinking at him.

"Well, erm…" This was rather hard to say when she was sober, regardless of the fact of what she'd done, "You kind of weren't the only one who fancied someone else. For ages. It was extremely pathetic." He noticed that he seemed to be holding her hands again and dropped them, blushing a little, "Uhm…yes? No? Maybe?"

She ran a hand through her hair before frowning and lightly shoving his chest, "That wasn't very nice what you just did to me!"

"Oh come on," he laughed, sitting back on her floor, his longer legs stretching out past her, "You're pretty cute when you blush."

Hermione blushed and tried not to smile as he grinned a little bit wider, "Well, I don't even know if I want to go out with you now."

He leaned against the cabinet door and hummed, "Ehh…you said you wanted to finish this and was terribly put out when I made you go to bed." He pointed at a small, fading red spot on his neck, smiling when Hermione covered her mouth and blushed an even darker red.

"Oh my God," she said, shutting her eyes and running her other hand through her hair, "I could die."

"Hey, I was the only one in here – I'd hate to imagine what would've happened if Sirius was," Remus wrinkled his nose. Now he owed the prat five Galleons. "And I won't tell if you won't. So long as you go on a date with me."

She lifted her head and gave a small smile, dropping her hands, "Conniving. Seven?"

He grinned, "Sure. See you then – I have paperwork."

"I thought you did that months ago?" she asked as he helped her up, smiling when he pouted.

"I did some and then I crumpled up the other part and threw it. By the way, did you know if you throw a pretty hefty wad of parchment at – oh, I don't know – a vase, it'll break?"

Hermione laughed and shook her head, "Did not know that."

"Well, now you do." He grinned before leaning forward and pecking her cheek, "See you at seven."

"Bye," she smiled as he left, taking a deep breath before pinching her arm repeatedly, smiling at the small little red marks she'd created. "Brilliant! Not dreaming! But that means I did try to give him a hickey," she felt the blush coming back before she shook her head and took another deep breath. She could get over that later. Hopefully.

* * *

**EVERYDAY THEY SHOUT AND SCOLD AND GO ABOUT THEIR LIVES**

**HEEDLESS OF THE GIFT IT IS TO BE THEM**

**IF IIIII WAS IN THEIR SKIN**

**I'D TREEEAAAASURE EVERY INSTANT**


	41. Or You Wouldn't Have Come Here'

**Guess who's siiiiiick? C:**

* * *

Remus stared up at the ceiling. Now was when the negativity was settling in. He could screw everything over on this one chance and then be forced to work with her until one of them succumbed to the awkwardness and quit. Or everything could go brilliantly and he could finally figure out what her lips tasted like.

His bedroom door opened and he looked up, blinking at Sirius and James grinning at him from the doorway, Peter watching from the couch with an eager smile on his face. "Oh dear God, what's going on?"

"We – " Sirius said, gesturing to him and James, " – are here to get you ready for your date."

Remus sat on the edge of his bed and frowned at his friends, "I'm pretty sure all I need to do now is brush my hair, if that at all." He'd changed clothes whenever it was about six, grabbing a clean pair of jeans and a dark green button-up, rolling the sleeves to his elbows. His hair, in his own personal opinion, seemed fine, if you asked him.

"Not that," James said as he reached forward and grabbed his arm, towing him into the living room by his shoulders.

"We know you, Moony," Sirius began.

"We know you're having doubts," James continued.

"And let me tell you, when a girl gives you a hickey and then agrees to go on a date with you, you shouldn't be doubting anything," Sirius stated, patting his shoulders before shoving him into an armchair.

"Well then what if it goes well?" Remus lamented, picking his legs up and settling them in the armchair with him, staring up at the living room ceiling now.

"Then go to her place, because you know we'll be nosy," Sirius shrugged indifferently.

"No, you don't – ugh," he sighed and dragged his hands over his face, "What happens if we're dating? Is it against Hogwarts rules? If it isn't, then what happens after that?"

"Uhm…what?" Peter eloquently stated.

He sighed again and gripped at his hair. So much for it looking decent. "I'm afraid of what'll happen further on, what if I mess up then? I really like Hermione and I don't…." He frowned down at his hands.

James snorted and Sirius snickered before the former sobered up and shook his head, "Moony, mate, we're sorry to tell you this, but…."

"Hermione's over the moon for you, has been for a while," Sirius grinned sheepishly as Remus blinked at them before trying to frown and finding the corner of his lips being tugged up.

"And you knew? You prats, worst friends ever," he joked, reaching out to tap Sirius's knee with the bottom of his foot.

* * *

"Hermione, you have forty-five minutes until your date!" Ginny shouted, but Hermione was still stuck in her armchair, eyebrows furrowing, biting her lower lip. "You look like you've dragged your hand through your hair too many times to count – what could've possibly gotten you worked up that much?"

Harry chuckled as he sat atop the kitchen counter, grinning at his girlfriend and best friend as one tried to convince the other to abandon her thick, leather-bound book and dress nicely, while the other continued to read her thick, leather-bound book and ignore the other.

Hermione gave a shaky sigh and read aloud, "_If any sort of relationship spawns between two professors, it must be handled with propriety and care. The students are not to know the extent of the relationship under any circumstances, or become involved in any way, shape, or form, and any sort of public display of affection by professors on Hogwarts grounds in view of the students is strictly prohibited. However, if two professors wish to get married and invite their students to the ceremony, they are welcome to do so._" She snapped the book shut and pursed her lips as she settled it on her coffee table, standing and biting at a nail, "It's not against school rules, they haven't updated the school rules in one hundred and seventy-three years, and they were much stricter one hundred and seventy-three years ago, right? Right. So this should be fine. Everything will work out fine." Hermione sighed and relaxed her shoulders, dragging her fingers through her hair before blinking at Ginny, "Ginny, when did you get here?"

The redhead snorted and grabbed the older girl's shoulders, steering her to the bedroom, "You have forty-one minutes now, Miss Smarty-Pants. I hope you know what you're wearing."

Harry chuckled as the two girls locked themselves in Hermione's bedroom, hopping down to peer at the title of the book before shaking his head and looking over the movie titles. Fifteen minutes later, Ginny attempted to somewhat tame Hermione's hair while Hermione simultaneously did her makeup, swatting away different instruments that Ginny had magicked to attempt to help the process, sticking with foundation, a pale blush, and a soft pink lipstick.

"No, don't use lipstick, use chapstick," Ginny frowned as she braided Hermione's hair back, struggling with the curly strands.

"What? Why?" Hermione asked before the product could touch her lips.

"It makes your lips softer, more hydrated, and the tint it brings will be the same as that lipstick," Ginny insisted as she waved around her tube of pomegranate flavored chapstick, "Plus, it doesn't have the waxy feel, and not as messy, won't get all over his mouth." She grinned when Hermione blushed scarlet, glaring at her in the mirror for a few moments before taking the chapstick from her with an even darker blush.

A few minutes later, Hermione and Ginny stepped out of the bathroom and Harry blinked at the girl he considered the closest thing to a sister he'd ever had before smiling. "You look great, Hermione," he said before arching an eyebrow, "Do I need to have a talk with him?"

Hermione frowned and tapped her wand against her open palm, "If you do you won't be able to talk ever again. Or do anything else that involves your mouth." She smirked as Harry grimaced before grinning sheepishly back.

"Keep eye contact, don't get shy, and tell me _everything_ as soon as possible," Ginny insisted before pecking Hermione's forehead, sniffing and dabbing under her eyes, "I think I'm going to cry, my Hermione's all grown up!"

"Ginny!" Hermione sighed, shaking her head before the two grinned and headed to the Floo with quick goodbyes. Hermione sighed, sitting down on the couch and settling her chin in her hands. Her stomach was in tight knots, and she felt like dragging her hands through her hair and whimpering, she felt so nervous. The Floo roared again and she glanced up before the blush crept up to her cheeks as she was reminded once again for the hundredth time that day that she – in her inebriated state – had tried to give him a hickey.

"Hey, sorry I'm kinda late, Sirius was…well, Sirius," he sighed, rolling his eyes with a grin before blinking at the book, tilting his head at the cover, as it was upside down, "What's that?"

Hermione hissed and vanished the book before standing and smiling back, making him look and blink at her, eyebrows moving up in surprise. "Oh, uhm, nothing, just a bit a light-reading." She grimaced when he grinned, "It was just…uhh…Merlin, I can't talk to you." She dropped her face into her hands, feeling the head take over every single part of her face.

Remus chuckled and moved closer, taking a hand away and smiling at her, "Well that's too bad, or else this'll be an extremely dull date. By the way, you look beautiful."

She blushed darker and bit her lip, dropping her other hand, "Thanks." She shook her head before smiling back at him, "So, Mister Lupin, what're we doing tonight?"

"Anything you want to do," he shrugged, dropping her other hand, "Although I figured not anywhere extremely public."

"Want to go to Hogsmeade?" she suggested before he arched an eyebrow and shook his head at her. "What?"

"I thought we _weren't_ students anymore?" he questioned with a cheeky grin before she snorted and lightly hit his arm, moving to the Floo as he followed. They Floo'd directly to the Three Broomsticks, which was filled with an adequate amount of patrons and a bored barmaid, who perked up when she saw the two professors. "Want to save this for last?" Remus asked while Rosmerta began to smile wickedly at Hermione, who suddenly remembered their conversation, not even a year ago.

"Oh, sure, that's fine," she said, glaring at the older woman as they began to move to the door.

"Oy, Remus!" Rosmerta called before they could leave, leaving him to turn innocently back at her as Hermione hit her head lightly against the doorframe. "Tell your little girly that I was _right_!"

"Uhh…okay?" he blinked before Hermione dragged him outside, glaring at a cackling woman before the door shut and she was left blushing in the safety of semi-darkness as Remus tilted his head at her, "What just happened?"

"Nothing, Rosmerta just loves picking on me," she reassured before he smiled.

"Do you want to head out to the bookshop?" he asked.

"Can we just stay there?" she questioned, making him laugh and walk with her down the cobblestone path, making her brave enough to slip her hand into his and intertwine their fingers.

They spent the majority of their date in the bookshop, pointing out favorites in hushed tones or handing the other a book to examine. The older woman who had manned the counter before the Marauders could even walked smiled brightly at the two. As soon as Hermione Granger was old enough to come to Hogsmeade, she'd thought that perhaps one of these two had been born at the wrong time period and completely missed their other half. It seemed that some higher power had righted it already.

She blinked when she heard a snort and saw a grin on Remus's face, looking down at the young witch, "You like Greek myth? Why?"

She snorted back, smiling softly back at him, holding an emerald green book in her hands, golden wings on the cover, "My name? Hermes?"

"But don't you hate _the Winter's Tale_?" he grinned wider.

"Yes, but that's beyond the point," she stated, "The Greek gods always fascinated me, as well as the creatures and stories. When I found out that some of them were real, I was more excited than scared."

"The Greek gods are the Roman gods," he pointed out, leaning against a bookshelf, grinning and looking at her as if she were the most important person on the planet, "As are the creatures. The only thing the Greeks don't have is me."

"Neither did the Romans," she quipped with a small smile, reaching out a hand to fix his hair as he blinked, "Remember? Romulus killed Remus."

"Damn, you're good," he mumbled with a tone of affection, making her laugh before three hands covered her mouth, both of his and one of hers, although Remus was grinning and murmuring a '_shhh_' as he chuckled, while Hermione blushed deeply. They locked eyes and blinked as their hands slipped away. Remus lowered his eyes slightly before looking back into hers, leaning forward and bracing a hand against the bookshelf. Just as they brushed noses and their eyes were dropping shut, the bell on the door ringed and the two jumped apart, eyes wide while Mabel – the woman at the counter – stepped into the backroom to cuss loudly, an action that startled her husband, who stocked the shelves, and amused their grandson to no end, who had just graduated from Hogwarts two years ago.

Mabel stepped back to the counter to be greeted by two blushing professors, getting a small little smile as she stepped up to the register. "It's about time."

"I-I'm sorry?" Hermione blinked.

Mabel glanced between the two before slowly smiling, "To check out. You two were looking hard enough over there. At the books."

"Err – right," Remus fidgeted, "At the books."

"Gram's sneaky," she heard her grandson say with a grin to his grandfather, who sighed and nodded in agreement.

The rest of the night was spent talking and walking along the road, staying away from the Shrieking Shack in the case that any of the Marauders should spot them and spy, before finally heading back to the Three Broomsticks and an awaiting Rosmerta.

"I swear to Merlin, Rosmerta, don't say _anything_," Hermione hissed as she went up to order the drinks.

"Me?" Rosmerta repeated incredulously, "Why, I have no idea what you're talking about. Butterbeers, yeah?"

Hermione sighed and visibly relaxed, "Yeah."

"Although," Rosmerta began as she grabbed two bottles, "I heard that Elderberry wine is more of an aphrodisiac." She snickered at the girl's heated glare, popping the tops off and discreetly adding something into both. "Have fun!"

"I hate you," she mumbled before she returned back to Remus, unaware of what the barmaid had put in the drink, although Remus was frowning at her as well.

It wasn't a common fact, but it wasn't necessarily a secret either. Rosmerta saw how nervous a few girls were on their first dates with a guy and teamed up with the owner of Honeydukes and Slughorn to create a potion that would make them relax around them enough to not just babble a string of incoherencies. It only worked on females, as Rosmerta stated that the boys _should_ be nervous, as it made some of them act like gentlemen.

Remus glanced at Hermione as she took a sip before giving a waving Rosmerta another frown. She meant well, he knew that, but they hadn't had the potion at the bookstore. His chest tightened at the memory and his breathed hitched as his eyes glazed over slightly before he shook his head and took a sip as well before leaning towards Hermione, slowly stretching his fingers out to place it on the cover of the book, which she was examining carefully. His fingers brushed against hers, tracing the designs on the cover, and he smiled when her fingers nudged against his purposefully. Okay, so maybe he should thank Rosmerta later. Although she seemed to be taking in their scene with a loony grin, so perhaps that was her payment.

"Hermione."

"Hmm?" she hummed, looking up, only to see his amber eyes trained on their fingers.

"I…that is…." Rosmerta pursed her lips – perhaps she should create an emergency potion for boys. "Was this okay?" His cheeks reddened slightly and Hermione gave a soft smile, playing with his fingers now, straightening and spreading them apart to place her own fingers in between.

"This was brilliant," she murmured with a smile.

He quirked his mouth into a grin, "Yeah?"

She grinned back, "Yeah."

"D'you want to…do it again sometime?"

Hermione nodded, now tracing the lines and small scars on his hands, and he would nudge the ones where he could reach with his finger, not wanting to disrupt her. Remus leaned against the table with his elbows, visibly relaxing and smiling as Hermione continued in her task. A few minutes later, a cheery Rosmerta announced that it was closing time, and that they could take the butterbeers home, and that it was free of charge.

When they were back at Hermione's loft, she was still playing with his hands, and he couldn't get the grin off of his face, and neither could she.

"Remus?"

"Yeah?" he asked softly.

"At the bookstore…" her fingers stilled and she looked up at him, "I…"

His head dipped lower and he glanced at her lips again, "Yeah?"

Her tongue darted between her lips with some force, nose wrinkling for a second when she realized that she'd gotten rid of the chapstick, and she fidgeted a little, "I never did like Romulus."

Remus grinned and chuckled, touching his forehead against hers, his hands at her waist. "I never liked Leontes."

"Why is that?" she smiled, hands on his shoulders.

"He turned you into a statue," he murmured, pulling her in a little bit closer, "Which, by the way, you look surprisingly life-like."

She chuckled again, her eyes shutting as his nose brushed against hers. "You look pretty good for being killed over the creation of Rome."

He hummed, his smile brushing against hers lightly, his thumbs running circles into her sides, "Do you want to call it a night yet?"

"Not yet," she whispered before leaning in a little and pressing her lips against his, fingering his hair gently while one of his hands came up to cradle the back of her head, sighing when her lips parted and she murmured into his mouth. They pulled apart and smiled at one another, eyes half closed.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked.

She pecked his lips, making him grin brightly, "Alright." She pulled away, still loosely in his arms, and arched an eyebrow as she smiled, "Better than that hickey?"

He released a huff of air, "_Way_ better." He grinned and released her, moving back and grabbing his butterbeer from off of the counter. "Tomorrow?"

"Alright," she smiled, watching him go through the Floo before she collapsed onto her couch with a large smile on her face, feeling warm and happy.

"How'd it go? Did you kiss her?" Sirius asked as soon as he stepped out of the fire. He grinned and said nothing, moving to his room, where he slid down the door and smiled to himself as he realized that his dreams really didn't do her justice.

* * *

**I'm sorry if some of this is wrong it's two in the morning and my head has a pulse. :(**

**Brownie points if you remember what happened all those chapters ago!**


End file.
